Nightmares In Paradise
by TechnoGecko1826
Summary: Leon and Helena make it back to the states. Everything seems alright until they are given a mission by SURGE regarding a bio-terrorist who sells BOWs to the rich high class of America. Leon and Helena have to push themselves and the boundaries of their relationship to capture one of the most notorious dealers in the underground market. Sequel to YAINTGB.
1. Chapter 1: Bounded

**Guys, from the bottom of my heart thank you so much for continuing to read on! I hope you enjoyed the one shots while I have been working my way to get the sequel written out! I want to give a special shout out to Emerald Fier who gave me an idea for the core of this story. Anyhow, I hope you all continue to enjoy these as much as I love writing them. The next chapter might not be out for another day or so because I am going to be taking a much needed break after doing finals. Plus I have some editing to take care of with this. As always, don't be a stranger and leave a review or PM me! It is greatly appreciated! Enjoy!**

Two years seemed to go by in a blink of a second. Helena walked out towards the apartment's balcony and could see the city in its full glory. She had missed this place and even a part of her enjoyed being back in the states. The smell of the wind, the textures of the buildings, everything just felt right. Not having to worry about the Family tailing her every move was also a plus. Italy had become a second home to her though and she found herself missing it from time to time since she had returned a few days ago. Helena gently closed her eyes and began to think. The Middle East incident was way past her now as were the missions Leon and her had been on in Europe within the last couple of years. For some reason she felt more content and in fact a bit peaceful during the last few months since Leon and her finally tied the knot. Helena leaned on the edge of the balcony and took in a deep breath. There was a lot to take care of and she already found herself exhausted. Getting their citizenship back, their records, and even the apartment in one piece was no easy task. A part of her was beginning to stress out until she felt Leon's arms around her waist. He buried his face in the crook of her neck and she lightly giggled as he kissed her.

"Hey, how are you holding up?"

He asked sweetly, his eyes traveling down the road below them to see the people wandering about with their daily lives.

"I'm fine, just tired that's all."

"Do you want to take a nap?"

"No, there is still a lot to do with the apartment."

Leon nodded and let Helena go before leaning up against the balcony himself. He played with his thumbs a bit as he began to think about the changes the pair had been going through. Claire kept their apartment clean for the most part while she lived there until they could return. Leon had even thought about just letting her keep the place during his and Helena's two year run from the Family, but she finally got with someone and moved in with him however. It was strange news for him to take in. Since Steve's death, Claire was always free spirited and carefree when it came to relationships but from what Chris had told him on the phone the previous night, she was taking the guy seriously, but in a healthy way of course. Leon smirked a bit, remembering how addicted he has been to Helena. A part of him couldn't blame Claire for her behavior; it's only natural when you love someone.

Though he was more than happy to be back, there was something about Italy that made him feel comfortable. Then again Leon loved the fact that it was just him and Helena, no one else. Now that they were back in the USA the couple would be going back to the tedious missions and the long periods being away from home. He wasn't looking forward to it, and he had a feeling Helena wasn't either. Being in Italy gave him a sense of freedom, and even a taste of what retirement was going to be like. Leon made it clear before Helena and him traveled back that he was only going to fight B.O.W's for another two years and that would be the end of it. All he wanted since he married Helena was to live for her, and hopefully live their lives in peace without worrying about the calamity in the world. Chris had offered him a job as a trainer for SURGE recruits so that Leon wouldn't have to travel or even face B. . Leon thought about taking up Chris on that offer, but he had to think it over especially with Helena. Leon looked over at her and could see the tired look in her eyes. Her body looked weak as well as her fingers lightly trembled. He came over to her and stroked the side of her cheek as he pulled her into a warm embrace. Helena found herself melting into his arms as she sighed and closed her eyes, fixating her ears to the sound of his heartbeat. Leon stroked her hair gently and rocked her a little bit hoping to ease up some of the tension and pressure she was feeling.

"Everything is going to work out Lena."

Leon whispered to her as she took in his scent and looked up at him.

"I hope so. I just can't believe how much we have to go through to set things normal again. Did Hunnigan ever call you back about the meeting you, me, and Manuela are supposed to attend?"

"No, she hasn't gotten back to us. She did say though the other day that we should go over to HQ and pick up some paper work for our passes and such. If you want I can go in myself and take care of it. You look like you need a break from everything."

Leon smiled at her and Helena shook her head with a smirk.

"Leon, I'm not getting old. I can take care of this too just as well as you can."

"Fair enough, but I just thought I was being nice."

"When are you ever nice?"

"I'm nice to you all the time! I take you out to eat, buy you things you shouldn't really have but I do out of the kindness of my heart, and I even did the laundry plus dishes the last few nights all by myself."

"Well, aren't you a big kid now?"

Leon lightly chuckled as he kissed Helena briefly, her lips lightly shaking a bit as she giggled. His smile turned into a huge smirk as he looked at Helena longingly. She shot a playful glare at him, taking the hint.

"I don't think I'm going to be up for it today."

She said in a faint voice as he kissed her neck tenderly.

"Why not?"

"I'm too tired, but maybe tomorrow?"

Leon stopped for a bit and kissed her forehead. He sighed a bit, seemingly disappointed but he shook it off though. Now that he was thinking about it, it wouldn't be a good time anyhow. There was still much to go through in the apartment and also to prepare for the night. Chris had been asking Leon since he returned if they could have a guy's night out like they use too after their AA meetings. Leon didn't see any harm in that, but he couldn't help but catch onto a negative vibe that radiated off of Chris and heck even Jill. Leon could recall during the car ride home that the two seemed tense throughout the trip. They barely even spoke to one another and it was only because of Claire they even muttered a single word. Leon remembered talking about this with Helena, and some part of him worried about Chris and his relationship with Jill. They just seemed off, and Leon didn't want to admit it but it was starting to grow on him. He was already worried enough about Helena's well being since they returned, and adding Chris to the list further complicated his mind. Leon found himself forgetting about it though when Helena gently pressed her forehead to his and relaxed her soft arms around his neck. It was little displays of affection such as this that made him feel less panicked. He looked deeply into her eyes and sighed happily.

"How did I end up with someone so beautiful?"

"How did I end up with someone who picks cheesy one liners?"

"Oh, Lena why do you have to kill these moments?"

Helena giggled as Leon rolled his eyes and pulled away from her. He found himself smirking a bit before he decided to head back into the apartment. Leon traveled to the bedroom and sighed, seeing that there was still quite a bit of mess leftover from their unpacking. Their passports were splayed out on the floor as were their clothing. The room was like one giant tumbleweed of papers and trinkets. Leon lazily shoved all the items off of the bed and lied down, folding his hands behind his head as he looked up at the ceiling. For some reason he started thinking about the wedding coming up. A part of him found it odd that Helena and he were going to go down the aisle together once more, but another piece of him couldn't wait for that. He loved the calm and serenity of the day Helena and he made their vows in Italy but he wished he could share it with everyone back home. Now that he had his chance, he was a bit nauseated from over thinking the situation. Leon found himself rolling his eyes as he recalled Claire and Hunnigan both inviting practically the entire D.O.S. and SURGE agents to the event. Leon closed his eyes, trying not to stress out so easily. He heard a small creak come from the hardwood floor, and immediently opened his eyes and perked up slightly. A large smirk descended upon his lips as he gazed up and down at Helena who was wearing nothing but one of his white dress shirts, slightly unbuttoned at the top. Leon recalled leaving one of the clean shirts on the couch earlier and found it missing later on. _So this is where it went to..._he thought as Helena leaned on the doorway and smiled at him mischievously.

"What's all this for?"

"I changed my mind about earlier. The one liner got to me."

"I knew you couldn't resist those deep down."

"Shut up."

Leon found himself laughing a little bit as Helena slowly made her way over towards the bed. Leon just gazed at her, and admired the every curve and crevice of her body that he could make out through his shirt she was wearing. Helena kept her composure as she crawled onto the bed. Leon tried to make a move on her but she instead shoved him back and got on top of him. Helena leaned in quickly to give him a kiss.

"Do I get laundry points for good behavior?"

Leon said in between their kissing. Helena rolled her eyes a bit, remembering they had an agreement about chores and what not. She could recall the half assed point system they had come up with a long time ago, well what Leon developed so he could avoid having to do some of the house work. He always lost though, but as he kept on kissing her ferociously, Helena felt that maybe this time he might win.

"Depends on whether or not you can satisfy me."

"Are you saying I'm not good enough for you, Harper?"

Their voices were getting clouded and scattered as were the minds. Helena managed to stop though real quick as she shot a quick glare at Leon.

"That is Ms. Kennedy to you, and you better start proving yourself."

"If you be quiet and let me kiss you I'll show you."

"Fair enough."

Nothing mattered anymore in this moment as they began to lose themselves within each other.

A few hours later Helena found herself relaxing in the bath tub and enjoying the sweet aroma of incense that filled the room. Steam rose up from the water as she sunk her face halfway into the tub and closed her eyes. After a few moments she looked over to the other side of it and could see Leon studying her. She couldn't help but feel pulled to him as she moved over to his side and laid on top of him, resting her head on his bare chest as he stroked her back. Leon smiled and closed his eyes as he breathed deeply. For some reason in this moment between him and Helena, it reminded him of their night together when they got married. His thoughts were stricken down though when he could hear his cell phone ring from the other room. Helena propped her chin up on his chest and looked at him with a bit of sadness.

"It must be Chris."

She stated as he nodded and slowly began to rise up from the tub. Leon groaned a little bit, the water was like extra weight and he felt somewhat dizzy. He went over to the counter and picked up one of the towels he had out for Helena and himself. He started to dry off and he looked at Helena real quick before leaving the bathroom. Helena took a moment to gaze at his body, taking in a few final moments before Leon was to leave.

"I'll be right back."

"No problem."

She smiled as he left. Leon shut the door to the bathroom slowly as he approached the bedroom and picked up the chirping phone at the foot of the bed. Leon clicked a few buttons so he could have Chris go on speaker and began to take out some clothes from a nearby drawer. He slipped on a pair of boxers and took out a couple of other pieces of clothing before replying.

"Hey Chris."

"Hey, nice to hear your voice finally. We were supposed to meet up at the meeting spot a half hour ago, what has been keeping you?"

Leon looked over towards the bathroom door and could see Helena coming out from the tub. After she retreated from the tub, Helena walked in and came over to give Leon a quick peck on the cheek before walking back to the bathroom to get her towel so she could dry off. Leon just gazed at her the entire time, almost oblivious of Chris's question until he heard the phone tick a few times.

"I'm sorry Chris I'm kind of side tracked."

"Oh, that's fine…you and Helena must have a lot to take care of over there especially with Claire living at your place for the last two years."

Out of the blue and unbeknownst to Leon as he was pulling up his pants Helena came darting out of the bathroom naked and grabbed him, kissing Leon wildly. He found himself smiling as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her in closer. He broke the kiss in between the contact and managed to reply back to Chris.

"You can say that again Chris."

"Hey man, are you going to be there or not? Also you sound 'distracted'."

"Don't worry Chris I'll be there—I just need to take care of a few more things."

"Alright, I'll see you in a few."

With that the phone clicked and Leon quickly returned to Helena as he found himself getting on top of her. He was grinning at her as he pinned her arms to the bed and began kissing her neck. Leon pulled back though and looked at her with passion in his eyes as she smiled warmly up at him.

"Now isn't a good time. I can't do that again for a while."

"Maybe when you get back?"

Helena cooed a hint of playfulness in her voice that made Leon shake.

"As long as I get those points then yeah…You're making this very difficult for me I hope you know."

"It's my job, Leon."

He captured her lips once again. The contact was brief and short lived but he had to tend to Chris now. Helena got up from the bed and began to go through the closet picking out some night clothes to wear. She looked over at Leon real quick who was now pulling on his shoes and wearing a casual red t-shirt along with one of his black dress shirts. Helena sighed and went outside of the room and into the kitchen. She was beginning to feel famished and started looking through the fridge. Helena took out some left over's from a diner she and Leon had been to the previous night and popped it in the microwave. As she was waiting for her meal, she couldn't help but look at the artwork that was still on the fridge from their time with Marlene and the rest of her brothers. She smiled, recalling that they still kept in contact during their two year getaway in Europe. A part of her missed that moment in time, but she didn't miss the hurdles she had to go through though in order to be with Leon however. Helena looked up more at the fridge and could see Claire's number on an emergency list. For a while since they had got back, Helena was thinking of giving her a call to check up and even possibly hang out. It had been a long time since she had a moment with another female, and she figured it would be great to make a day out of it so she could catch up on all that had changed.

The microwave let out a dinging sound, and Helena took the bowl out with the food still gently tucked inside. Leon came out of the bedroom after another ten minutes or so and greeted her. He pulled her into one more quick kiss before heading for the door. Helena sat down at the table and began to play with the food somewhat as she watched him take off.

"I'll be back in a few hours."

"Call me if you decide to stay over at Chris's place and all."

Leon nodded at her and headed for the door. Despite a growing negative feeling inside of him, he couldn't wait to have a one to one conversation with Chris, but he also yearned for Helena though. She was highly addictive and he found himself stopping on the occasion to look back at the apartment door before he took off down the stairs. If he had it his way he wouldn't have left her. Leon came out of the large doors leading to outside, the night air was crisp and the streets were alive yet calm. He began the long trek to the café were Chris told him to meet up at. Despite the stress of trying to adjust, and despite his fears about readjusting to the hectic world of the D.O.S. and now SURGE, Leon felt relaxed as he walked down the sidewalk, taking in the moment to come to terms with the fact that he was home where he belonged.


	2. Chapter 2: Guy's Night

**Sorry for this one taking a bit to upload. I had to go over it several times, I can't help but feel there is too much ooc still, I guess I just wanted to show the characters lightening up a bit before all the bad stuff comes at them...anyhow if you guys want to ask me some personal questions in regards to the story I have a tumblr account. Just look up my FF username and ask away. Anyhow, hope you guys will enjoy! The next chapter might not be out until Thursday. Thanks for baring with me!**

Chris was sitting up near the bar area of the café and having a fifth cup of coffee to himself. He sighed a bit, feeling conflicted and frustrated that Leon hadn't showed up yet. He propped his elbow onto the table and looked down at the burgundy colored wood thinking about Jill. He didn't leave on good terms with her before he arrived at the café, and right now his stomach grew more disgusted with every sip he took as he thought about the cruel words that were exchanged between them both. He heard the bell ring near the doorway and saw Leon come in, making him cease to think about the fight. Leon quickly came over to his side and took a seat next to him, lightly panting a bit.

"Sorry I'm late man."

Leon said as he tried to catch his breath. He spent the last fifteen minutes brisk walking to get to the spot also his time with Helena earlier already made him tired. Chris nodded at him and took another drink. Leon studied him carefully, sensing that Chris was off big time right now. His muscles were tensed up and his eyes conveyed a sense of emotional exhaustion. Leon sadly looked at him with concern as he asked one of the workers for a drink.

"Is everything going alright with Jill?"

"No, everything is going to hell with her."

"How so?"

Leon asked politely as he grabbed the cup of coffee that was made up for him. He took a light sip waiting for Chris to respond. Chris sighed a bit and shook his head, he didn't want to think about anything right now and a part of him felt like this was a mistake to have Leon come and chit chat. Instead of getting angry though he quickly managed to calm his mind before replying back to Leon.

"I'll tell you in a little bit. How is Helena doing?"

Leon could tell that Chris was beginning to grow nervous due to the tone of his voice. He just smiled at him and took another sip before responding.

"She's doing well. I think she's more stressed out though than she is leading me to believe. Then again it's been difficult adjusting back to being home. I'm telling you living in Europe will give you a fresh look at things."

Chris let out a smirk a bit as he took a final drink from the Styrofoam cup.

"It sure sounded like you two were doing alright when I called."

"Come again?"

"I'm not an idiot. I know you both were all over each other. I could hear it, the kissing at least."

Leon's face turned red for a brief second as he couldn't help but smile as he thought about Helena. He turned away from Chris momentarily and focused his attention to the table trying to collect his thoughts. Leon shook his head lightly as Chris cocked an eye brow and looked at Leon sensing he was trying to hide his feelings on the matter.

"So tell me is that the reason why you were late?"

"You caught me. I'm sorry about that though."

"Nah, don't be. It's understandable. If I had a hot wife who was all over me like that I'd probably cut my losses and ditch you in a heartbeat."

Leon and Chris both laughed a bit together as they felt themselves lighten up. Chris pulled out a small cigarette and took out small silver lighter from his back pocket. He put the end of the cigarette into his mouth then cupped the end of it with his hands as he lit it up. Leon could smell the bitterness of it as Chris took in a deep breath and released the putrid smoke from his mouth. He glanced over at Leon for a bit who was finishing up the last of his drink.

"I'm sorry if this bothers you."

"No, not so much but I thought you told me you were done months ago. What changed?"

Chris took in another puff as he found himself slouching into the chair.

"Life, that's what happened. I went from smoking just one a month, to none, now back to at least three a day."

"Must have been something big to get back to that nasty habit."

Leon said, trying to subtly bring back up the conversation from earlier. He didn't mean to pry, but he was getting rather curious about it. While he was waiting for Chris to give a respond, he ordered up another cup of coffee and began drinking once more. Chris nodded at him as he inhaled once more, taking in the tart taste of the smoke.

"Alright, well I guess I got to come clean."

"Did you and Jill break up—"

"Leon, she's pregnant."

Leon's eyes widened and his mouth lightly gaped when he heard the words stream out of Chris's mouth rapid fire. He took in a huge breath as he rubbed his forehead and looked at Chris seeing the sad look in his eyes return.

"How far along is she?"

"I'd say probably two months or so."

"She doesn't look it."

"Trust me though, she acts it."

Leon nodded in agreement and took in a deep breath before asking Chris a difficult question.

"How are you holding up from the news?"

Leon asked with a hint of sadness in his voice, feeling the conflict that Chris was feeling in the moment.

"Not that good. Leon, I'm not ready to be a father. I know I'm like past fifty now but with my work I decided long ago I never wanted kids. I'm sure you feel the same. When she told me I just snapped. I just felt like my whole world got juxtaposed in a blink of a second. Despite knowing the field she is in, Jill intends to keep it. Before you arrived we just had a huge fit about what we are going to do about it."

Leon's face formed something between a frown and a glare as he heard the disappointment in Chris's voice.

"You sound like it's a bad thing that she is going to be keeping it."

"I want her to be happy, but I just don't see how it's going to work. I didn't intend for any of this to happen at all. I don't get why she is being so stingy about considering alternatives."

"Maybe she doesn't want to give up her child so easily, have you considered that?"

Chris was getting ready to say something, but Leon's words got to him. He could also detect some form of hostility in his voice as he said that. Chris sighed and found himself lightly glaring.

"Whose side are you on anyhow?"

Leon could tell Chris was getting ticked off. He gently took in a deep breath and tried to relax a bit before he responded.

"I'm not on anyone's but Chris I don't think she meant for this to happen. You got to try and look at things from her perspective."

"You have no idea how hard it is though. She is completely different."

"Look, maybe you should try to take a breather so you can be calm and think things through. You're going to need to be strong for her, that much I know of."

Chris shook his head bewildered as he put out the cigarette in a small ash tray nearby. He shot another look of disappointment but this time directed at Leon. Leon was somewhat taken aback as he could see the anger build up in Chris's body language while he furiously put out the cigarette, almost as if he was squishing a bug in between his hands.

"Alright then, say if this was Helena we were talking about and she ended up telling you she had a kid baking in the oven what would you do?"

"Chris, this isn't about me."

"Yeah, but it could happen to anybody. Tell me Leon; since you seem to know exactly what to do in this situation, how would you react?"

Leon could tell Chris was getting hostile. He stayed relatively quiet as Chris awaited an answer, but little did he know that it was beginning to hit him hard. Leon had thought about this before countless times throughout the two years he and Helena had been together, but there was never a clear answer. Chris was right in this regard, Leon didn't plan on having children at all. After dating Angela long ago and witnessing the China calamity it especially reaffirmed his beliefs that children shouldn't be brought into a world this messed up and full of bioterrorism. Leon could wholeheartedly feel the predicament Chris was facing, but at the same time though when he truly looked at his own life he really didn't know how he'd react. In the end, he felt like he had no room to talk. Leon just lightly closed his eyes and bowed his head, not knowing what to truly say anymore at this point.

"I thought so."

Chris faced away from Leon and looked back at the counter. Leon's eyes shifted a bit as he glanced around the café, trying to think rationally. He was also dumbstruck it seemed. Leon gave a friendly pat on Chris's back as he got up from his seat. Chris looked at him with a concerned glance and a somewhat questionable look traveled across his face. Leon just lightly smiled as he got ready to speak.

"You know I may not entirely get what you are going through, but the one thing you should take my advice on is this: if you really love her you'll do the right thing."

Leon then began to take off for the exit. He quickly opened up the door and went back out into the street, feeling a cool air pick up and travel through his body. It somewhat relieved the tension he was feeling in the café while he was around Chris. A part of him was somewhat ticked off that Chris snapped at him especially when he tried asking for help, but Leon knew it was probably Chris's nerves getting the best of him. As Leon kept on walking, he heard footsteps come up from behind him. He quickly turned around and noticed Chris who was hovering a bit as he panted. Leon tucked his hands into his pockets and cocked an eye brow as Chris motioned for Leon to give him a few seconds to breathe.

"Look, I didn't mean to snap at you man. I'm just scared shitless."

"It's alright; I shouldn't have acted like I knew everything you're going through. Truth is I'd be scared shitless myself."

Chris stood up and nodded. An awkward silence filled the air until Chris rubbed the back of his neck and looked up at the sky momentarily.

"Hey if it's all the same to you, do you want to go hang out at the bar? I might need some help picking out baby names. It might help I guess."

Leon was a bit hesitate at the request. He hadn't been to a bar or anything of the sort in a long time. A part of him was wary about the entire situation, but on the other hand he figured he could go for Chris's sake. Leon somewhat cocked an eye brow though in response to Chris's previous words before he began to give his answer.

"Seems kind of awkward doing that kind of thing at a bar."

"I know but I could use a couple of drinks. Are you game?"

Leon smirked a bit and gave Chris another pat on the back before the two walked off to Chris's car in silence. He was happy that his friend was starting to mellow out once more. As they got into the car, Leon took out his phone real quick and began to text Helena after he buckled up. Leon made it a habit to let her know when he was going to be drinking so that way there wouldn't be any problems. He stared at the screen for a moment and took in a deep breath before typing.

_Hey I'm going to go to the bar with Chris. I just wanted to check in to see if that is alright with you. If it's not then I'll come home._

_Leon, you're a grown man. You can go out and have fun like that if you want to. Don't come back home acting like a horses ass and we will be okay. Just know your limit, that's all I could ask of you._

He found himself smiling before replying back to her.

_I love how you can be so understanding with me. Do you feel lonely not having me there?_

_Nope, Claire is over right now and we are having some girl talk._

_Just don't talk about me…_

_Haha now we are going to since you mentioned it!_

Leon face palmed himself as Chris turned on the ignition of the car and started to drive. He looked over at Leon with a questionable look before asking him what was going on. Leon took notice and rolled his eyes a bit.

"You're sister is over and they are gossiping about me."

"Tell her to bugger off if you want."

Chris laughed as he focused his attention back onto the road. Leon was getting ready to text back until he got a notification in his email. Leon opened up his message page and saw a half naked picture of Helena on it with Claire smiling and waving in the background. His face flushed as he quickly closed it. He then began to text back to Helena once more.

_You shouldn't be doing that especially when there are guests._

_Claire didn't mind, in fact it was her idea._

_And you're the one who calls me terrible._

_Ha, ha :p I'll talk to you later Mr. Kennedy._

_I hate it when you do that…_

_You know deep down you like the sound of that. I love you._

_Love you too._

Leon was going to write back something else but was distracted by Chris who was waving his hand at him. Leon closed his phone and shoved it into his right hand pocket as he looked over at Chris.

"What's wrong?"

Chris smirked a bit and placed his hand back onto the steering wheel. He shook his head and turned on the radio, adjusting the stations before he replied back.

"You were glued to the screen for a few moments. I was beginning to worry about you man."

"Sorry, I can't help but feel distracted whenever she talks to me."

"You sound madly in love my friend. How did you get the courage to purpose?"

Leon looked out the window of the car, taking in the city lights that flew by as he began contemplating Chris's question. Leon found himself smiling a bit as he sighed and slumped into the seat of the car, feeling the leather behind him tighten up near his back a bit as he crossed his legs. Chris just laughed at him though seeing how slouched he was. Leon shot him a quick glare before responding back.

"Getting back to your question, I didn't have courage. I just knew it was the right thing to do."

"Sounds like another one of your clichés Leon."

"Best one I've made."

"Any regrets?"

"Not one bit. I'm happy I decided to ask Helena to marry me. I wouldn't have it any other way."

Chris nodded as he adjusted the stereo a bit. He began to think about Jill and the mishaps they have been sharing for the last month or so. A part of him was a bit jealous of Leon. To Chris the relationship almost seemed too flawless. He logically deduced that wasn't the case though and that Leon and Helena hard their fair share of fights and disagreements, but he couldn't help but feel that there was something missing between Jill and himself. Chris knew since the mansion incident that he loved Jill with every fiber in his body, but he never had a right way to convey it. Even after her supposed death before the Africa mission, Chris always thought if he was given the chance to do it right he still wouldn't have been able to let her know how he felt.

Jill mattered to him and she was the essence of everything he had become since Africa. She taught him sympathy, and also how to be human again despite the chaos that reined the world thanks to bioterrorism. Jill was his rock in a sense. She could keep him submerged when everything else would be drowning around his world. He started to feel a bit guilty for yelling at her earlier on before he met up with Leon, and he thought about maybe purposing after they could get the chance to talk things out. Chris found himself sighing to himself as he adjusted the gears of the stick shift. The car grew quiet as Leon and Chris remained silent for a while, until a familiar song came on.

"Hey Leon, this is your song."

Leon gently laughed as he could hear the melody pick up.

"Living la Vida loca? I don't think so."

"Well you sure sung it good whenever you got wasted."

Leon shook his head and couldn't help but give a light chuckle. After the song played for a few minutes he found himself tapping out the beats on his pants and soon Chris followed suit. They both looked at each other real quick before starting to sing little bits and pieces of it. Finally, after some time they gave in and began to sing it out loud. In between some of the lyrics the two men found themselves laughing and reminiscing about the good times they had together way back when they didn't have to fight B.O.W's constantly. Leon couldn't believe he was in the car singing with a full blown masculine guy like Chris. In fact, some part of him found it hard to believe this was even going on. They finally arrived at the bar and Chris pulled the car over to a curb. By then the song died down and Chris got ready to check out his phone after hearing it beep a few times. He assumed it was Jill until he saw the number. It was Claire and it was a text message. Leon studied Chris for a moment looking concerned.

"Hey is everything alright? Is that Jill?"

Chris shrugged and shook his head as he opened up the text message. His eyes widened when he saw what followed.

_Hey Leon, I bet this makes you miss me. Don't worry Helena said it would be alright!_

Chris's face turned redder than a bell pepper when he saw the photo Claire had taken of herself lightly exposed and winking at the camera phone. Helena was in the back, laughing really hard it seemed. Chris's eyes traveled back up to Claire's innocent face, well until he saw her making a kissy face at the camera for Leon. Chris didn't know but Leon somewhat hovered over him and took notice of what was going on. His heart began to race, and he started to feel clammy. Claire and Leon and never told Chris that they had dated years ago after Raccoon City. She insisted not to let her brother know because she assumed Chris would kill Leon. Leon unbuckled the belt and tried to make a beeline for the door, but found it locking on itself. He gasped a bit as Chris looked at him, his arms crossed and his brow poised in a stinging glare.

"You got some explaining to do Kennedy. We are not leaving this vehicle until you tell me why a half naked photo of my sister is on my phone for you."

"Shit…"

It was the last thing Leon could utter in that moment.


	3. Chapter 3: Girl's Night

**Thank you guys for keeping up on the reading! The next chapter might not be out for a bit. I got some things I need to take care of during my break while I have the chance. But thank you to everyone giving me reviews and for those of you who are new to the fanfics, welcome to the club! I'm happy to have you! :D Enjoy!**

Helena and Claire were sitting on the sofa and laughing hard as tears streamed down their faces. It had only been a few hours or so since Claire showed up at the apartment, but Helena was already having the time of her life. They both tried gasping a bit as they came to the realization that Claire accidentally sent the risky photo of herself to her brother instead of Leon. Helena never thought doing something like that would be so funny, and in fact she couldn't recall a time where she had this much fun with another female. Even with her sister they never did anything out of the box like this. Then again most of the time Helena never hung out in such a manner, it was not to her personality nor her character to joke like this. For some reason though tonight she found it fitting and to an extent enlightening especially with her stress.

Helena found herself rolling off of the sofa, gripping at her stomach as she let out one last laugh before Claire wiped the tears from her eyes and began to speak.

"I didn't mean to send that to Chris! Do you think Leon's going to be killed?"

Helena managed to get up onto her knees as she heaved hard from the laughter that murdered the muscles in her stomach.

"I hope to god no! I still need him to do stuff around the house!"

"You can always have my brother make up for it! He can be a faithful house servant!"

"Claire, I have other needs that Chris can't attend to."

Claire stopped for a moment to think about what Helena said before her voice emitted a scream like laugh in the room. She grabbed a nearby pillow and covered her face as Helena crawled back onto the couch laughing hard once more.

"I think Leon has rubbed off badly on you!"

Claire stated as she panted hard, trying to focus her breath as she tossed the pillow over to the side. Helena managed to wipe some of her bangs out of her face as she breathed hard, now feeling the full force of that laugh starting to die off a bit.

"How so?"

"The way you joke now. It's weird because two years ago when I officially got introduced to you, I don't know. Helena you never seemed the type to kid around."

"So I've changed?"

Helena asked with a bit of concern in her voice as Claire nodded happily.

"For the better I think. You've lightened up."

Helena laughed gently taking care not to let out too much for her throat was starting to hurt. She then got up from the sofa and went back to the kitchen looking for something to drink. Claire jumped up from the sofa herself after picking up the nearby pillow on the ground and plopped it back in its original spot. Claire then happily traveled over to Helena, seeing if there was anything to eat in the fridge. She groaned a bit taking notice that there was hardly anything thus far. Helena motioned for her to look in the cupboard and Claire smiled happily taking notice of the chips and cookies that were stuffed in the back corner. Claire lightly cocked her eye brow a bit as she took out some of the items from their hiding spot.

"Why is all of the good stuff shoved in the corner?"

Helena smirked a bit as she made herself a glass of soda.

"To keep Leon away from them that's what."

Claire giggled to herself as she came over to the kitchen counter and took a seat across from Helena. They both found themselves eating in silence for a little bit as they tried to allow their throats and stomachs heal from the laughing fest that occurred not that long ago. Claire gazed upon the apartment and a faint sigh escaped her lips. For the last two years she enjoyed calling this place her home and since Leon and Helena got back she missed being here. Claire was more than happy they were back though, and was grateful Helena still wanted to hang out with her. Helena took notice of the light sigh coming from Claire and she cleared her throat as she swallowed a gulp of soda before asking her what was troubling her.

"Is there something on your mind?"

Claire had to do a double take as she smiled, now finally registering that Helena asked her a question.

"Just thinking about change and how I already miss this place. Don't get me wrong, Markus is a good guy and everything plus he's got a nice place but it just doesn't feel the same."

Helena nodded in understanding for she could relate on some inner level with Claire. Sure this was originally Leon's and her place but after living in Italy for a while she began to miss the small little space they called home there. Helena didn't want her mood to become dampen from being homesick, so she decided to turn the conversation around.

"You haven't told me a whole lot about Markus your boyfriend. What's he like?"

Claire managed to swallow a piece of a chip before responding back to Helena.

"He's pretty nice. I mean to others he may appear stern and maybe even a little bit aggressive but he's a down to earth guy once you get to know him."

"You said he works for the government correct?"

"Yeah, actually he used to be a head associate of the DOS before he was transferred to SURGE."

Helena nodded then bit into one of the cookies from nearby. She then began to contemplate a bit before piecing together some things about Claire's boyfriend. Earlier on she told Helena that he used to work under Kent. Though Claire had nothing negative to say about him, Helena had a feeling this was not going to be a good thing. The memory of Kent and the way he psychologically played her and Leon like pawns in a terrible game of chess was fresh in her mind. She could forget about the Middle East and almost dying, she could even forget the pain she went through during her recovery time on that dreadful mission, but what Helena could not let go was her rage towards that man and Simmons. No matter how much progress she made over the years trying to heal her mental wounds, those two men would be right at the center of her core. Though they were dead and gone, it was like a piece of them would always linger for they brought out the worst in her and both men tried destroying her world by hurting the people she loved dearly.

Claire could see that there was a hidden rage in Helena's eyes as she cocked an eye brow and motioned at Helena trying to snap her out of her trance.

"Are you okay?"

Helena blinked for a second then nodded at Claire.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Claire, do you know if Markus ever worked under the Family? I don't mean to be accusing but it's kind of a concern I have."

Claire took in a deep breath and tried to relax. She knew the question was going to pop up sooner or later, and a part of her felt comforted knowing it was Helena she was going to be talking about this with instead of Leon. Knowing him and how dead serious he is about their safety, he'd probably have Helena on a plane back for Europe faster than a bullet coming out of a gun.

"He use to be. I'm not going to lie about that. During the interrogation period at the main facility while you and Leon were on the run in Europe, Markus was arrested. Instead of fighting it he came in quietly and confessed that he was part of the Family, well, was a cousin of one of their benefactors. He told the heads the truth about Kent and even gave names from other people who were involved. Because of him there is no one in the Family right now that is in charge of a government power or sector. In exchange for his information, Markus was allowed to keep his status but volunteered to do some time. Manuela then assigned him to me to help out my anti-B.O.W. campaigns for a whole year and we kind of hit it off. I was quite skeptical of him and hell even hated him because of the people he was associated with but honestly he turned out to be one of the nicest people I've ever met. I don't expect you or Leon to understand, and I also get that you have every right to feel paranoid about him because of the threats and almost getting assassinated in Europe a couple of times but he's had nothing to do with that."

Helena found herself nodding a bit as she took in Claire's words. A part of her was always going to feel weird about Markus no matter how much Claire tried to sugar coat how happy their relationship was, and even a part of her mind was screaming the man was only using Claire to get to Leon but Helena tossed it in the back of her subconscious. There was no need to over think things and panic.

"I think maybe if Leon and I had a chance to meet him it might set some things strait."

Claire found herself smiling big as she nodded in approval to Helena's request. They both found themselves going back to snacking on some of the chips before Claire got a mischievous look traveling across her face. Helena studied the red head for a moment, contemplating what was going on through her head.

"What's so humorous?"

"Well a couple of things. First, did you and Leon do anything risky in Italy? Second, how are you both going to be working together tomorrow and act professional?"

Helena found herself lightly choking a bit on the soda she made for herself as she heard Claire's questions ring out. She then found herself laughing along with Claire while she wiped some of the sodas contents off her face before replying.

"Okay, one that is none of your business and two just because were married doesn't mean we can't act normal."

"Oh you're no fun! You sounded just like Leon then! He never wants to talk about that stuff."

"For good reason."

Helena found herself winking at Claire and they both found themselves laughing tenderly to themselves. Their fun was cut short though when they heard the door to the apartment open and groaning sounds were coming from the entry way. Claire and Helena instinctively picked up the nearest knife or weapon available at their disposal and looked at one another. Mission or not, it was a habit to be prepared in case a B.O.W was to attack: no exceptions. The girls made their way into the living room and saw Leon with his hand over his nose as Chris escorted him into the building. Claire and Helena sighed out of relief but then gasped when they noticed Leon was bleeding.

"Leon!"

Both women managed to yell out as Helena went over to his side and led him to the sofa. He looked up at Helena with a glare as he could feel the pain tense up around his nose.

"Hey Lena, am I bleeding?"

"Yeah, hold on a second let me get something for that."

Claire's eyes widened and she gasped a bit as she took notice of her brother Chris. Claire put her hands to her hips and glared at him.

"What the hell happened?"

Chris shrugged a bit as he swayed around the room before crossing his arms and leaning up against the wall. Claire could tell he was somewhat tipsy based on his looks. Helena came back with a paper towel as Leon held it up to his nose letting the blood gently trickle down onto it.

"Chris I thought we were having a good time!"

Leon managed to shout as Helena helped him apply pressure to it. Claire gaped once more and went up to Chris, looking him dead in the eye.

"We were! We sang together, we had some drinks together, we even picked out a baby name for mine and Jill's child but then you –ugh I can't even talk right now because I'm so pissed!"

"Chris what did you do?!"

"I hit your previous boy toy in the face Claire, that's what happened!"

Chris found himself smacking his face a bit as Claire tried interrogating him.

"This turned out to be a terrible night. I found out that my best friend deflowered my sister!"

Despite how serious the situation was, Helena and Claire found themselves laughing together after taking in everything that was going on. Leon glared at them both as he shook his head. Chris found himself getting irritated as he groaned somewhat. Claire then brought her attention back to her brother and found her nerves jumping about as she tried explaining herself.

"Chris you need to understand I was the one who seduced Leon! He was almost too chicken to do anything! In fact I almost gave him the nickname the ten second man because he couldn't even handle seeing my own breasts without getting too excited!"

"That's not true Claire! You knew it was I who came on to you and you told me you loved it!"

Chris's fists began to clench and Leon's eyes widened.

"That's it Kennedy you're a fucking dead man!"

Leon jumped over the couch as Chris chased him down the hallway with Helena and Claire tailing Chris to try to get him away from Leon. Leon made it to his bed room and tried to lock the door quick but Chris barged in with all of his strength. He managed to pin Leon to the ground by putting his weight onto his legs. Chris found himself nearly choking him as he tried to hit him again.

"Kennedy god forbid if you ever have children and it ends up being a son, and if your son comes near my daughter if I have one I'll kill you! I'm not going to let the Redfield family be tarnished by a sister fucker or his offspring!"

"Chris! You're kind of hurting me! Let's talk this over, besides I'm with Helena now you got nothing to worry about!"

"Like hell I do Kennedy!"

Leon managed to block a punch from Chris using his arm as he kneed the rampaging man in the gut before getting up and heading to the other side of his and Helena's bed. Chris got up and sneered as he tried to find a way to corner Leon. Luckily no more damage was able to be made when Claire showed up and grabbed Chris by the arm and literally dragged him out of the room.

"That's it Chris! You're drunk and you are not thinking strait, you need to go home!"

Helena came over to Leon's side as he found himself slumping onto the floor while panting heavily. Sweat traveled down his face as he gripped at his nose a bit, now tasting the metallic flavor of blood hit his tongue. Claire came by the room real quick and took a peek at Leon while she sadly looked over at Helena.

"So sorry things turned out like this. Leon, I hope you're going to be okay."

"I'm just peachy Claire."

Leon managed to say in between breathing. Helena gave a faint nod to Claire and they both smiled at one another.

"Don't worry about it Claire, go take care of your brother and I'll take care of Leon."

Before Claire could reply back to Helena, she found herself rolling her eyes as she could hear Chris shouting how ticked off he was that his own best friend deflowered his sister over and over again. Helena and Leon found themselves covering up their ears as they could hear Claire shout at him to stop saying that. The door had finally shut to the outside of the apartment, but Helena could still make out Chris yelling at the top of his lungs. Leon collapsed his head upside the wall and Helena couldn't help but start laughing nervously at the entire situation that just occurred. Leon shot a friendly glare and slugged her in the shoulder as she pouted.

"What was that for?"

"For laughing at me, that's what."

Helena shook her head and found herself sitting next to Leon.

"I wasn't laughing at you; I was laughing at the situation."

"Yeah, me getting hit in the face was the situation."

"No, listening to your past love life was the main event."

Leon rolled his eyes and smirked. Helena grinned as she got up from the floor and extended her hand to Leon. He gazed up and down at her as he hesitated while he took her hand. Helena propped him up back on his feet and Leon found himself pulling Helena close to him. Despite having a bloody nose, Helena couldn't help but find him cute in this moment.

"I don't think I'm going to be ready to go to work with a half broken nose."

"Leon, you're exaggerating. You're only bleeding a bit. Besides you have to go to work with me. We have important stuff to take care of."

Leon began stroking Helena's hair a bit as he gave her a brief kiss.

"You know we don't have to go tomorrow. We can always postpone it."

Helena rolled her eyes as she gently backed off from Leon as he made a light pout.

"I don't think I want to make out let alone have a good time with you with an injury like that."

"Don't be coy with me. I know deep down you still find me sexy when I'm hurt."

"Maybe just a little bit."

He gave a light smile as they both headed to the kitchen together. Helena got a damp rag ready for him and Leon graciously applied it to his nose as he hissed a little bit. They both headed over to the sofa and were silent for a few moments as Leon adjusted the rag and wiped off the blood from his upper lip. He then motioned for Helena to come closer to him and she found herself smiling while cuddling up to Leon. He put his arm around her as she lied down on his chest.

"So Chris is going to be having a child from what I heard?"

Leon nodded as he took off the rag and put it on a small desk nearby the left hand side of the couch before he responded.

"Yeah, I guess Jill is about two months along."

"Did he decide on a name?"

"If it's a boy then Zack and if it's a girl probably Carmen."

Helena found herself nodding in agreement to the names as she could feel Leon pull her closer to him. She yawned for a brief second catching his attention.

"Are you okay?"

Leon asked in a low hushed whisper as Helena glanced back up at his eyes sweetly.

"Yeah, I'm just feeling tired. Claire and I were laughing pretty hard earlier before you and Chris showed up in that mess."

"Yeah, thanks a lot for getting me into trouble."

Leon laughed somewhat as Helena gave him a slight smack to his leg as she propped herself up. Helena found her lips meeting Leon's cheek as she kissed him tenderly for a moment. Before she could break away from him, Leon aggressively pulled her face to his and kissed her. Helena was trying not to give into his touch as she stroked his hair while they were kissing. It was hard though, and even after all this time of being together she found him irresistible. She was surprised when Leon broke their contact as he smiled at her sweetly.

"Despite you getting me into trouble with Chris, I'm happy you're here helping me out."

"For your information I didn't that was Claire and second I could leave you at any moment."

Leon's mouth lightly gaped as he started to mess around with Helena a little bit. She found herself giggling crazy as he tried to tickle her.

"You know you can't leave me."

"Too late, the divorce has been finalized."

"Well you're not getting anything from me if we are going to split up the apartment!"

"I'll get my lawyers and take everything!"

Leon found himself smirking as he laughed a bit, taking notice he was on top of Helena having her pinned. He leaned forward and kissed her neck before she cocked an eye brow, taking notice of him laughing a bit to himself.

"Helena there is something you'll never get back from me if you decide to go through with the divorce."

"Oh really, what's that then?"

"Isn't it obvious?"

Helena thought about it for a moment then found herself breaking out of Leon's grasp and leaning up to smack him across the face. He winced as he tumbled off of her and rolled onto the ground. He laughed a bit while he gripped at his nose again. Leon cursed under his breath as Helena got off of the sofa and crawled on the floor over to him. She rested her head gently near the crook of his neck and they both stared up at the ceiling together, smiling.

"What can I do to make you take me back?"

Leon said playfully as he found his left hand meeting Helena's. She found herself humming a bit as she looked over at him momentarily.

"Marry me again and be nicer to me."

Leon turned to his side and smiled at Helena.

"I'm always nice to you. You're the one who's mean to me all the time."

"Just when I thought we were getting along, we're back to fighting again."

Leon shook his head and pulled Helena close to him as her face met his chest. He stroked the back of her head lightly and briefly kissed her forehead.

"You know I was really nervous about coming back to the states, but having you with me has made things easier. Sometimes I don't think you understand how truly happy I am to have you Helena."

Helena grinned for a moment, feeling her face flush lightly with red when she heard his words come out so sweetly. The truth was in this moment she wanted to accuse him of being corny once more, but for the first time in a while she couldn't help but feel admired and appreciated. Helena broke out of his grasp and propped herself up. She was sitting on the ground criss crossed while Leon was still on the floor, looking up at her as he gently massaged her back.

"It's almost midnight and we have to be up by seven."

She stated with a disappointed tone lingering within her voice. Leon leaned up and pressed his forehead to hers.

"We can always come in late."

Helena closed her eyes and lightly giggled as she nodded, still keeping the contact between their heads.

"Do you think we'd get into trouble for that though?"

"It's the first day back Helena. I don't think anyone is going to care."

Leon gently grabbed her right shoulder and massaged her skin. Helena looked up at him and could see he was happy despite the bruising he had on his face. Helena began kissing Leon, not thinking about their jobs or anything else.


	4. Chapter 4: Exchange

**Alright fellas two more chapters and we are going to be heading into the serious stuff of the story. Thank you everyone who has been continuing to leave some positive feedback and good constructive criticism. I am eating up that stuff like I do cake! I hope you continue to enjoy as the story becomes serious after this chapter! As always, feel free to leave feedback or message me! Enjoy! :)**

A couple of weeks to a month passed by since Helena and Leon officially were reinstated their US citizenship along with their previous records. It took them a while to go through the process but they were given a proper welcome back from the rest of the government facility along with SURGE. The pair found themselves amazed during this time to find just how integrated the BSAA was now to their head office base. A whole new section of the facility was built dedicated to just the people who worked with the BSAA and their associates. Hunnigan couldn't have been more proud of her hard work come to life. For so long she had dreamed about uniting the CIA and BSAA together, and now with it complete she was officially given a more worthier title aside from being a desk manager. Much to Leon's surprise, her new position also gave her paid vacations which were something she was always nagged on him for.

Not only was the SURGE branch of the facility upgraded with the latest technological advancements, but it also boasted some top contenders on their list of agents. Chris and Jill were one of the many who were now co-captains of the SURGE operative's team unit which is a special group of people dedicated to rescue missions and Intel on bioterrorists. Because of Jill's pregnancy however, she took a step back and was working as a trainer for recruits. Since the night of Chris nearly breaking Leon's nose, they had since then talked with each other. A part of Leon though couldn't help but think Chris was still upset upon learning about the secret relationship he carried out with Claire, but he managed to put it behind him for the time being.

Leon and Helena didn't do any real big missions during this time. The most they did was escorting some scientists from B.O.W Defense Research and Tactics over to some other countries to conduct more research on vaccines for some of the viruses. Jarvis, one of the professors they rescued in Europe was doing well with himself and gave the couple great news that he managed to find a cure for some samples of the T-Virus after many years of tracing down several potent strains across the globe. As much as the pair was thankful their missions didn't involve B.O.W's running amok amongst civilians and cities, they hadn't had a chance to see one another within the last two weeks. Being busy all the time now with protective detail and with helping Manuela during her organization meetings to better the D.O.S, Leon and Helena had their hands full. Now and again they would send each other texts or small messages here or there but to them both it was never enough at times. It was part of their job though and they accepted it even though it was difficult at times.

Helena yawned as she stretched her arms and began walking down the main entryway of the hospital facility. Claire called her hours beforehand after hearing the news that Jill was going to be receiving a checkup. Helena had some time to kill and decided to go ahead and help out. On the way there, she bumped into a familiar face.

"Hey Sasha, I haven't seen you in a while."

Helena greeted warmly as Sasha came up to her from behind her oak wood desk and shook her hand, also returning a smile. It had been a long time since Helena encountered Sasha who was her nurse during the time she was recovering from her wounds from the Middle East incident.

"Same thing goes to you Miss Har—"

Sasha found herself smirking a little bit and holding back her tongue upon seeing the bright ruby ring on Helena's wedding finger.

"Do you have a last name now?"

Helena shook her head with a light laugh.

"It's Ms. Kennedy now."

"Whoa wait a second, you two tied the knot?"

"That's right. There's going to be another wedding ceremony in the next few days. You're more than welcome to come. Hunnigan practically invited everyone else so I don't see the problem."

Sasha found herself laughing at Helena's somewhat irritated remark. She had heard that two agents were going to be getting married but it never occurred to her it would be Leon and Helena. Sasha grabbed some papers from her desk and motioned for Helena to follow her as they made their way to Jill's room. On the way, Sasha explained that she was going to be Jill's primary doctor during this time and was going to help her walk through the exams she would be needing. Helena found her mind becoming slightly overwhelmed by the information Sasha was giving to her. She shook her head as she grasped a bit of her hair, messing with it momentarily before yawning once more.

"I'm sorry I don't mean to yawn. I'm just tired from the mission."

"Probably also tired of hearing me talk about babies and all the protocols we got to go through."

Sasha said calmly as she grinned at Helena.

"Makes me feel better I've decided not to have children. Too much to worry about."

Helena found herself saying as they approached the doorway to Jill's room. Sasha gave Helena a pat on the back and looked at her fondly.

"Well, if you ever did you know who to go to for help."

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind."

Helena said somewhat sarcastically as the two women entered the room. Jill was sitting upright on the hospital bed with Claire sitting next to her. They both waved at Helena who gave a light nod and a smile as Sasha and she came over to the girls. Helena propped up a metal chair and took a seat nearby the hospital bed and began listening to Sasha intently. So far it looked like Jill was doing well minus the fact she needed some more vitamins in her diet. Claire was ecstatic the entire time, proclaiming how happy she was that she was going to become an aunt. Jill on the other hand looked nervous but glowing as every now and then she lightly touched the surface of her stomach. It almost now three months and she could see the weight starting to come in more. She sighed after Sasha took a blood sample to check for infections and what not just in case she came into contact with anything during a training session. Helena could tell she was shaken up a bit by the news but was handling it quite well. Helena couldn't imagine herself in that situation, and deep down admired Jill for sticking through with her decision to go through with the pregnancy till the end. She found her stomach slightly getting a little bit upset as she glanced around the room for it reminded her of the time she was trapped in a similar fashion because of her wounds. Claire and Jill took notice of Helena's nerves and decided to address it to her.

"Are you holding up alright Helena? You look kind of pale."

Helena did a double take before yawning once more and focused her attention on the two women who were looking at her concerned.

"I'm alright. I just don't like hospital rooms, too many bad memories."

"I heard your last escorting mission had you get up at three in the morning and you didn't get back until almost five in the afternoon."

Jill stated as Sasha wrote down a couple of notes here and there and went to take Jill's blood sample to another area of the hospital wing, leaving the three women alone together.

"Yeah, I'm feeling pretty worn out right now."

"Have you been able to see Leon at all?"

Claire asked as Jill gazed up and down at Helena, taking in her tired features. Jill smirked somewhat and grinned as she shook her head.

"Even if they were to see each other it probably wouldn't be much exciting cause of how tired Helena is."

Helena and Claire lightly laughed at Jill's joke. Claire jumped up from the bed and went over to a small water fountain located nearby the door. She found it silly to have such a thing in a hospital room, but she shrugged as she got herself a drink. Jill was breathing a bit more slowly as she traced her hands over her abdomen thinking about what was going to happen as time went on. Helena studied her carefully before responding.

"Jill, are you going to be alright?"

"Yeah I'm going to be just fine. I can handle this, I'm a big girl."

"That's going to be an understatement after you reach the third trimester."

Claire stated as she grinned up at Helena and Jill who both rolled their eyes at her but not long after laughing to themselves. Claire came back over to the bed and sat down at the edge of it.

"So if my brother helping you out more?"

Jill shrugged a bit with a half smile before replying.

"Yeah, I guess in his own way. He's still trying to take everything in but I think he's starting to come around better. I've just been giving him his space and he's been doing the same thing for me. Just the other night he brought up names for our kid so it's a start."

"If he doesn't start manning up, let me know and I'll beat it into him."

Claire said with a wink as Jill gave her a warm smile in exchange. Helena's eyes then met contact with Claire for a moment as the red head recalled what had happened a while back. She rubbed the back of her head as she gave a nervous laugh.

"Leon still doesn't have any hard feelings about my brother hitting him in the face right?"

Helena shook her head and was getting ready to speak until Jill's mouth gaped and she interrupted.

"Whoa, wait time out. Chris hit Leon in the face?"

"Yeah, it was about a month or so ago. Chris found out about mine and Leon's relationship we had way back when. It was funny though, right Helena?"

"Now that I am thinking back on it, it sure was."

Helena managed to say in between a yawn and a smile as Jill added up the pieces together in her brain. She found herself laughing out loud as Claire and Helena cocked an eye brow out of question.

"Alright, I saw Leon's face the week you and him returned at least the bruising on his nose. I seriously thought that you were the one that did it Helena."

"Don't be ridiculous! Am I really that cruel?"

Helena said as Claire and Jill laughed together. Helena couldn't help but share in with the girl's fun but a part of her was irritated from that. Word traveled fast around the facility that Helena knew how to keep Leon in line due to his nose. Almost everyone she encountered during that week asked if a fight had occurred between the two of them. Helena had to admit she did come close a few times to really wanting to hurt Leon, but never to the extent that Chris had taken it. She leaned her head back against the seat as she could hear Claire's and Jill's voices mumble down while she rolled her eyes playfully.

After about another hour and half, the girls went their separate ways but not before Jill gave Helena a notification requested from Manuela in regards to a mission that Leon and her were going to be taking on later on within the next few weeks. Jill gave her the slip of paper saying when the meeting was going to be taking place and also there was a side note to go with it. Hunnigan was requesting Helena to come nearby her office ASAP for documentation paperwork that needed to be filled out for one of her undercover names she had requested for Helena. She thanked Jill kindly for delivering the news to her before Jill went off to the SURGE area. Claire tagged along for a short while until she caught wind of Markus. Helena and she stopped briefly near the main hallway as Claire gave him a friendly wave and as soon as they made contact with their eyes, Helena could see him lightly smile as he returned it. Claire sighed happily not before Helena motioned for her to go after him.

"Just go say hello. No sense in torturing yourself."

"I think I might just do that. Oh, by the way he says he is looking forward to officially be meeting you."

"Why not now?"

Claire rubbed the back of her head nervously as Helena waited patiently for an answer.

"He thought it would be better to be introduced to you and Leon at your ceremony. Thought it would be a good atmosphere to break the ice. He's a got a really nice gift for the both of you."

Helena nodded quietly as she took notice of Markus talking to some of the suits nearby.

"He seems awfully busy with them."

Claire looked over and nodded slowly, sensing that Helena was still feeling a bit anxious in regards to Markus.

"He tells me all the time he gets tired of the suits pestering the agents and all. Actually he was planning on putting out an initiative that makes it harder for the suits to barge in on agents trying to recover in the hospital wing."

Claire was hoping that telling Helena something good about Markus in that regard would lighten things up a bit. Helena smiled as nicely as she could; still feeling like there was some negative vibes in the air when she looked over at Markus. Though she had been reassured not just by Claire, but also by Manuela about Markus having a clean slate she still couldn't help but remain defensive. Even though Leon and her were welcomed with open arms back into the states and didn't have to worry about too many Family members coming into high positions of power, they never knew who might be sneaking around trying to get close to them to go for the throat. Claire and Helena said their final goodbyes as they departed their separate ways for now. Helena was walking down the main corridor of the hospital wing and came over to the elevator. Her eyes widened as she took notice of Leon already inside of it. He looked over at her with a smile as she got on. They stood side by side next to the other remaining relatively quiet.

"Kennedy."

She said as she could feel her lips form a sly smile.

"Harper."

She could feel her fists clench as she heard her maiden name be slyly called out by him. Though she loved her maiden name before hand, she hated it whenever Leon didn't mention her by his last name that she had taken from him. She brushed it off though and crossed her arms.

"What brings you to the elevator?"

Leon shrugged a bit as he found his hands being shoved into the pockets of his jeans.

"Oh nothing much, just heading down to the third level to get some more paper work. How about yourself, what are you doing here?"

Helena shrugged back as she could feel the elevator come to a stop.

"I'm going to see Hunnigan because she has important documents for me to look over."

Leon nodded as the silver elevator doors opened up. He motioned with his head for Helena to go on ahead first as he traveled behind her. Before they went their separate ways they both froze for a moment and gazed up at each other. They hadn't seen one another this close in a couple of weeks and their closeness felt almost foreign again. Leon found himself gazing at her for too long as he sighed and turned to go down the other hallway.

"I'll talk to you later sometime when you're not so busy."

He said nicely as Helena nodded with a sad look in her eye.

"I'll be looking forward to it."

Leon gave one more slight smile to Helena before taking off to take care of whatever it was he was dealing with at the time. Helena slouched a little bit as she shook her head feeling disappointed. A part of her was somewhat angry at herself for not at least giving Leon a hug, but then again she made it clear to him they had to be professional during their work times. A part of her almost regretted being the one to suggest that in the first place. Helena groaned a bit as she headed off towards Hunnigan's new office. She opened up one of the glass doors and came into the main office way and much to her surprise, there was no one around. Helena cocked an eye brow as she glanced around seeing everything was neat and tidy and a single piece of paper was on the front desk.

"Off to a meeting. Will be back around nine o clock?"

Helena found herself repeating the words. She then took some of the papers that Jill gave her and studied the writing carefully. Helena found herself closing her eyes as she shook her head and felt a smile creep up on her lips once she took notice that one of Hunnigan's K's didn't have her signature loop added to them. She quietly exited out of the office and traveled down the hallway, still amazed that there were so few people around. Some of them happened to be other agents who gave her brief nods as she headed down the direction Leon was heading off to. Helena stopped midway down the hall after she couldn't see him and she hummed to herself a bit while crossing her arms to contemplate. While she wasn't aware, Helena gasped as she felt something grab her right arm and pull her off. She took notice of Leon ushering her away over to a nearby empty office space. Helena couldn't help but still feel stunned as Leon quickly shut the door and pinned her to the wall and began kissing her ferociously. Helena didn't hesitate to wrap her arms around his neck and deepened their contact before parting.

"I missed you so much."

Leon managed to say as he gasped for air.

"I did too. You should really work on your K's though if you want to pull off Hunnigan's writing."

"I purposefully did that."

"Oh shut up Leon."

Helena whispered as she pulled him into another kiss taking every moment to savor him. Helena didn't want to admit it but it felt good having him like this again after so long. It was almost as if everything was new once more, every touch and every moment Leon's lips clashed against hers. Leon broke their contact this time as he stroked the side of Helena's face tenderly and kissed her neck roughly. It was beginning to become hard for Helena as she tried to keep her voice down while she enjoyed every second of Leon's contact with her skin. She managed to get him to stop momentarily and she could feel his breath on her face as he teased her lips a bit before responding to her.

"I can't wait until I'm with you again."

"Only a few more days then we get the weekend off."

"You excited about marrying me once more?"

Leon asked in a seductive tone as Helena found herself grinning widely as she looked deeply into his eyes before they kissed again.

"More than ever."

"Ditto."

They both started to make out again passionately for what seemed like forever until the door swung open. Leon backed off from Helena as they both gasped and their eyes widened as panic and fear began to sink in. All three parties felt like they were a deer in the headlights. Leon and Helena could see Hunnigan staring at them wide eyed along with a couple of her colleagues. Before anything could be said Hunnigan quickly shut the door.

"Anyway there is nothing to do here in this area! Let's go back to my office and chat!"

Leon and Helena were panting hard, feeling like their hearts were about to fall out of their chests as they froze until they heard Hunnigan usher her colleagues away. After the coast was clear they both found themselves laughing at the situation.

"Do you think we are going to get into trouble for this?"

Helena said in between her giggling. Leon rubbed the back of his neck and sighed.

"I don't think so. It's Hunnigan, and knowing her it's not you I'm worried about. She probably will be the one giving me the talk later."

Helena bowed her head a bit as her face flushed from getting caught until Leon perked up her chin and gave her a light kiss.

"Don't be ashamed. It was well worth it considering we haven't seen each other in two weeks."

Helena nodded at him with a huge smile as she fell into his arms for a long embrace. She could feel Leon's chest heave a little bit as he sighed happily, finally having her with him once more after being away.

"You made me go through some bad withdrawals Lena."

"Quit your bitching Leon, I think I had it worse."

"Says who?"

"Says me."

Leon laughed a little bit, taking a moment to concentrate on the tone of Helena's voice.

"Sadly this has to be short lived. I really do have to go to a meeting with Chris real soon and I won't be back until our actual ceremony date because I have another mission."

Helena nodded with understanding as she pulled Leon closer to her.

"How soon do you have to go?"

Leon found his hands entangling Helena's as he looked at her longingly.

"Another five minutes or so. Why do you ask?"

"Think you can kiss me that long?"

Leon gazed up and down at Helena with passion in his eyes as he smirked widely.

"I could do more."

Helena rolled her eyes as she laughed while finding her arms rest around Leon's neck. Their foreheads met in the middle of each others as the bottoms of their lips met momentarily.

"You're so terrible."

"Only because I love you."

Their lips gently pressed against one another's while they enjoyed being together again.


	5. Chapter 5: Celebration

**God this is longest chapter I have ever written..I hope you guys will like it! Another chapter might not be up for some time because college is going to be starting back up but I'll keep you guys posted if anything comes up! Also if you want me to read your material and help you out with your own fanfics, don't be afraid to ask! I'd be more than happy to help. Don't forget to review, or leave feedback if you can! Enjoy!**

A few days later the mock wedding ceremony occurred. There were over three hundred plus guests in total much to Helena's amazement along with Leon's. Despite this ceremony being twice as big as their little one in Italy, the pair still kept their dressing casual with Helena wearing the same white dress as previous except Leon changed it up a bit. He wore a black dress shirt like before but had a red tie and was wearing one of his nicer leather jackets. Helena could remember giggling to herself when she caught him with it and insisted that he just wear something normal. Leon didn't care though and managed to convince her it was an original idea.

When it finally came to the moment in which they were to kiss one another again after renewing their vows to one another, they both felt ecstatic. After they sealed their love again but before their friends and fellow co workers, a roar of applause was ensured but the only thing Leon and Helena could hear were each other as they broke contact and whispered to one another. Never once in a second breaking their intense eye contact.

"I love you twice as much now."

Leon said faintly as he kissed Helena's lips once more.

"I think it's safe to say we love each other fully."

Helena and Leon both smiled at one another before turning their attention to everyone who was attending. Finally the echoes and sounds surrounding them both began to beat at their ears. They both finally realized how big the crowd seemed to be, almost like an endless wave of just sheer cheers and celebration. The two of them didn't want to admit it to one another, but as they smiled at everyone and began to make their way to the crowd, they began to feel already tired from everything. Escorting the scientists and being on the alert for the last few weeks was a drain on them and after all was said and done, Helena and Leon just wanted to retreat back to their apartment and rest up while enjoying their one week getaway. Manuela offered to give them a paid honeymoon out of the country as her gift to them but they kindly refused. After being on the run for two years and taking on missions from the BSAA branch in Europe, Helena and Leon just wanted to go home and enjoy their time with each other. First thing was first though, they had to converse with people as they were congratulated.

Leon gave Helena a brief kiss before they slowly drifted apart and began to head on over to different groups of people who wished to talk with them and give the couple their blessings. Helena gazed upon the giant room they were in, and she closed her eyes while thinking back to the beautiful trees that surrounded her back in Italy before she married Leon. It brought her peace for a short while after being overflowed and surrounded by the guests and friends. She sighed to herself as she got a drink from a nearby food table, missing the simplicity she had a while ago. True, she was more than thankful for everyone putting together another wedding for her and Leon but a part of her was overwhelmed. As she took a final sip, Helena walked over to the edge of the balcony and got a nice dose of fresh air that hit her nostrils hard. Her thoughts danced away in her head as she began to miss Leon's touch until Hunnigan came out of nowhere and pulled her into a brief hug. Helena gasped lightly as she smiled up at Ingrid who was grinning while holding a glass of wine.

"Congrats yet again Ms. Kennedy."

"Thanks Ingrid, hey are you still upset over what happened the other day in the office?"

Hunnigan waved her left hand and rolled her eyes as she smiled at Helena.

"Pfft, don't worry about it hon. I already had a talk with Leon about it cause I know you weren't the one that planned that out. Might I say even though that was bad, I'm quite envious of you both. I haven't had a guy whisk me away in forever."

The two women laughed together thinking back on the other day when Leon randomly grabbed Helena into the empty office room and kissed her. Helena couldn't help but think about what came afterwards as she turned her head to see the crowd of people conversing with one another.

"I don't even know half of these people."

Helena stated in a faint voice as Hunnigan sipped some of her wine.

"Well, I do know some, but honestly I didn't think just about everyone from the SURGE team was going to be here alongside the other agents. Leon knows most of these people though more than anybody else. Helena did you invite anyone yourself?"

"Aside from Claire and Jill nobody else. I don't have any other family remember?"

Hunnigan sighed a bit sadly as she gently pat Helena's shoulder.

"I'm sorry; I don't mean to put a damper on things. Are you going to come back inside?"

Helena shook her head and smiled.

"No it's okay Ingrid. I'm going to stay out here for a bit, go on ahead and mingle."

Hunnigan nodded and took off leaving Helena by herself. She took in a deep breath and sighed, not wanting to show that Hunnigan's words actually got to her. Jill and Claire were the only two people she could think of that were relatively close to her for she had no one else now as prominent family. Deborah started to come back to her, and Helena found her hands grasping at her face a bit as she tried to hold back her tears. If she had a choice, Helena would have given anything to have Deborah see her getting married to Leon. Helena took in a deep breath as she found herself gazing back up at the stars with a small hope that maybe her sister was here beside her in some small way.

"You look nice."

Helena's eyes widened as she could hear the almost seducing sound of the woman's voice travel through her ear drums. It was a voice Helena would never forget, and it was one she wanted to be rid of quickly. Helena found her fists clenching as she turned to her side and took notice of the red dress cascading down her pale legs, and her eyes were filled with stardust. Ada just looked outward but not before capturing a quick glance at Helena, who by this time had her anger rising.

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to pay my compliments to the bride of course."

"You shouldn't even be here, not after what you did."

Ada could hear the hostility in Helena's voice as she fully turned to face the bride. Ada gazed up and down at her, feeling a weird jolt of jealousy trickle down her spine. Helena did look beautiful and she deserved to be happy but a part of her wished it had been her in the dress at this moment.

"How is Leon doing?"

"Why should I be obligated to tell you anything?"

Ada closed her eyes and could feel Helena's words sting. She crossed her arms and opened up her almost lifeless eyes once more and sighed.

"You can be quite stubborn. I can see why he loved that in you. You never give in to anyone even if they pester you."

"Ada, you need to leave now. This isn't a request, it's an order."

"No one orders me,"

She paused, trying hard not to feel hurt by what she was about to let roll from her tongue.

"Ms. Kennedy…"

Helena could feel her fists grow tighter with each passing second as Ada's and her eyes were deadlocked. After witnessing what occurred between her and Leon during Operation Jarvis, she could never again trust her not even after they made that deal years ago that in exchange for Ada's freedom she was to give Leon the choice to determine which of the two women he wanted to be with. Ada backed off a little bit as she rummaged through a little bag she was carrying. A small box with a bow on top was taken out by her delicate fingers and she calmly presented it to Helena.

"What is this for?"

"It's a wedding present of course. Nothing dangerous if that is what you are thinking."

Helena was quite hesitant and even felt a trickle of nerves pulse up and down her spine as she found her hand slowly reaching over to take the box. Helena held it in her hand as she inspected it, but then quickly turned her attention back to Ada, this time with not as much hostility.

"Thanks."

She managed to say as she held the box to her side while keeping her composure. Ada merely nodded and looked around, seeing that there were a lot of people. Her mind calmly took in everything, the sights, the smells and the fact that once again Leon was Helena's and not hers. Ada sighed a bit and turned her focus back to Helena who by now was looking at the mysterious woman with concern.

"Ada, as much as I am angry at you hell even wishing I could hit you right now I don't hate you for what you have done. I don't hate you for telling Leon what had happened to you or even when you kissed him, but we need to get something straight between us. You can't be doing this anymore."

"Doing what?"

"This! Always sneaking in and out of our lives and trying to see him behind my back! We're married now, yet again. This can't continue on, you just have to accept that he chose me. We chose each other…I'm not going to give him up so easily. A while ago I intended to let Leon go back to you because deep down I knew he still carried a torch for you and after finding out that terrible ordeal you faced alone, but I can't and I will not let it happen now. Leon and I are married now,"

Helena paused as she could feel the anger inside of herself build up again. She clenched the box Ada had given to her before turning around, not able to face her anymore without letting her own rage descend in her voice.

"Don't come near us again Ada. This is my final warning."

Ada glanced down at her own feet then quickly began to walk off. She went over to the edge of the balcony and climbed over it, getting ready to make the trip back to her base. Helena turned back around and they both exchanged eye contact once more. Ada found a smile form on her lips.

"Congratulations."

With that she disappeared once more into the night as she fell from the balcony and began to climb down the building. Helena took a moment to breathe and cool off before looking at the small white box with the red bow, now facing her in the palm of her now sweaty hands. She wanted to open it, but a part of her felt to prideful to even accept it. Helena sighed as she went over to a nearby table outside that had some other gifts from people for her wedding, and placed it there amongst the rest not wanting to think about what happened just now.

Leon lost count of how many people he conversed let alone the time. He began to grow a little panicked inside as he tried looking around for Helena, but was overcome by the guests and friends that kept on stopping him. He would smile and talk for a while but then would go back to searching for Helena. Leon went over to the food area hoping that he'd find Helena there, but as always she was nowhere to be found. He then took notice of Chris eating some of the meals prepared and they both met eye contact as Chris came over and shook his head at Leon.

"Two weddings man, how do you deal with it?"

"Like always, luck."

Chris laughed as he gave Leon a friendly hug.

"Hey Chris, you still aren't mad about the Claire thing right?"

Chris let go of Leon and smirked a bit as he smiled.

"No, don't worry about it. It was in the past and heck if you both decided way back when to go full blown with the relationship I wouldn't have cared. Actually, having you as my brother in law would have been nice."

"That's good to know."

Leon stated, but not long afterwards Chris pulled him into another quick hug and squeezed Leon's body tightly with a threatening grasp and mumbled.

"I swear to god though if I ever catch you with a naked picture or even a sultry one of my sister I will break your legs and make it look like an accident—and here comes the lovely Jill!"

Chris let go of Leon and embraced Jill into a warm hug as he kissed the side of her cheek tenderly. Leon was still shaking a bit from Chris's warning as he could remember the pain that surged through his face when Chris socked him for finding out Leon had slept with Claire years ago. Leon pushed what Chris had told him to the side as Jill came over and gave a quick hug and kiss on the cheek to Leon.

"You and Helena both look fabulous tonight."

"Thank you. I'm sure she'd say the same thing if I could find her."

"I'm sure she's off somewhere talking with Ingrid or someone else. It's pretty packed here after all."

Jill stated as Chris wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her shoulder. Leon smiled at the both of them, happy to see they were getting along and looked loving towards one another.

"How are you feeling with the pregnancy?"

Leon asked as Jill took a sip of some juice nearby.

"Oh pretty good, actually a lot better. It doesn't seem as scary now, right Chris?"

"Yes Jilly Bean."

Leon laughed a bit as Jill's face flushed with red as she giggled while Chris buried his face in the crook of her neck and kissed her.

"Chris, not in front of Leon!"

"I don't care. You both look great together. I'm going to go find Helena, catch you both a bit later Chris and…Jilly Bean."

Leon grinned as Jill rolled her eyes while Chris and she took off into the crowd. Leon was making his way towards the balcony when he felt a huge bump in his chest and he fell to the ground. Jake helped Leon up and they were both surprised to see one another.

"Jake? What are you doing here? I thought you and Sherry were working on a case back in Europe and couldn't make it."

"Sherry wanted to see you lovebirds get hitched once more."

Leon glanced around, trying to see if he could spot her but alas because there were so many people he couldn't see her much like how he couldn't find his own wife. Leon and Jake met each other's eyes once more as Jake and he shook hands.

"Congrats once again, hero."

"I appreciate that."

"Look, I don't know if you have the time but there is something I want to ask you."

Jake stated as he gently let go of Leon's hand. Leon studied Jake and could tell there was something on the young man's mind. Leon found himself nodding as he had a strange feeling this was concerning Sherry. He crossed his arms and looked at Jake with a serious face accompanied by a slight smile.

"So tell me, what's up?"

Jake rubbed the back of his head and sighed somewhat as he shoved his hands into his jacket pockets.

"Kennedy, you've been a father figure to Sherry for a long time and I was, well, we were somewhat hoping you'd give her away when we get married. I purposed to her weeks ago. She said she wouldn't accept my proposal though until you gave us your blessing."

Leon could feel his heart drop a little bit when he heard the news escape from Jake's mouth. He then thought back to the missions Helena and he went on by Sherry's orders and Leon still found it amazing how so much time had passed. He could remember when Sherry was a little girl, all scared and threatened by the B.O.W's in Raccoon City and how defenseless she was. Despite the government separating the two of them for a long time, Leon strived to make an effort in helping Sherry get properly taken care of. He could remember Claire and himself showing up to one of her birthdays when she was little and singing to her as she wished that Leon could have been her dad when she blew out her candles. Against orders, Leon even tried to adopt Sherry after a few years working for the government, but with his line of work hunting B.O.W's and terrorists his request was immediately rejected. To this day he still felt terrible that he couldn't make Sherry's birthday wish come true. Though he didn't want to be a parent, Sherry was the only exception he ever made when it came to having kids.

Leon then recalled meeting Jake for the first time and seeing Sherry now finally an agent after all her years of training and dreaming. He could remember his first thoughts on Jake, thinking he was too cocky and was trouble. Like any surrogate parent, Leon felt a huge urge to protect Sherry even from Jake if he had to. He could remember when Sherry almost got hit during China and how powerless he felt as he tried running to her safety to block her from being squished by the Ustanak, only to be beaten by Jake who managed to save her. Though Leon had his problems with Jake in the beginning, he grew to trust him and during the Middle East when Sherry announced to him that Jake and she were in a committed relationship, Leon felt something inside of him feel torn. Like any dad, he felt happy for her but at the same time concerned that Jake wouldn't be able to take care of her. It wasn't because of the fact that Jake was Albert Wesker's son that made him cautious about Sherry going into a relationship with him, but it was his attitude and ego that made Leon worry about Sherry's well being.

Leon snapped out of this brief flash back as he could see Sherry amongst the crowd now, in a beautiful glimmering red dress with small black sparkling dots near the end of it. She looked beautiful and happy as she glanced around talking with others and laughing. In this moment, Leon felt like even though he wasn't always there for Sherry like he wanted to be, some part of him felt honored to watch her grow up. Leon glanced back at Jake with a firm look, and Jake somewhat glared as he swallowed a gulp of spit from his nerves acting up as he waited for Leon to speak up. Leon then formed a smile as Jake's eyes widened up a bit.

"I'd be more than happy to do that for the both of you. But I'm going to hold you to something."

"What would that be?"

Jake asked, trying to hide the huge relief in his voice.

"Keep her safe, keep her happy, and keep her to yourself."

Jake nodded and smiled.

"I'll honor that and then some."

Leon pulled Jake into a quick hug and he motioned for Jake to go meet up with Sherry. Leon stood there as he watched Jake happily come up to her and pick her up from the ground while he spun her around. Sherry laughed happily as Jake and she kissed one another. Leon could see that Jake was telling her the news, and Sherry gasped and jumped up and down with excitement as her arms wrapped around Jake's neck. Her laughter could be heard throughout the crowd, and Leon smiled seeing that the two of them were happy together. Sherry briefly looked over and her watery eyes looked up at Leon. She nodded at him, and her lips motioned the words thank you. Leon blinked and nodded before taking off into the crowd in search for Helena once more.

After another ten minutes or so of bumping into people and conversing, Leon finally made his way to the balcony and found Helena gazing upon the sky. His eyes took in her features as he smiled and walked over towards her. Helena let out a faint gasp as she could feel Leon's arms wrap around her waist as he kissed her. Helena could feel herself melt in his arms as she began to drift away in his kisses.

"How have you been?"

He asked tenderly as Helena broke out of his grasp and she faced him. Helena really wanted to mention what happened between her and Ada a while ago, but she didn't want this moment to be ruined because of a spat between the two women. Helena wrapped her arms around Leon's neck and she kissed him briefly.

"I'm doing well, just a bit overwhelmed."

Leon nodded and the two of them both found themselves staring at the large crowd. They both groaned a bit and laughed together.

"How much longer do we have to put up with this?"

She asked calmly as Leon kissed her forehead.

"Not much longer, maybe another few hours or so. We still have to dance you know."

"I'm looking forward to that a lot. Hey Leon, did you get me anything?"

"I'm not going to tell you."

Helena rolled her eyes as Leon smirked at her while they held one another.

"Not even a hint?"

"Nope. It would ruin everything I had planned."

Before Helena could ask anything else, Chris, Jill, Jake, Sherry, Claire and some others found them and urged them back inside much to their disappointment. It was time for the dancing and other parts of the ceremony to begin. Leon and Helena held each other's hands as they headed back inside with their friends, smiling at one another before venturing into the crowd getting ready to take their "first" dance as husband and wife. Helena and Leon met in the middle of the crowd and began to slowly move to the rhythm of the music playing in the background. He held her close to him as they both took notice of everyone else joining in.

The dancing lasted for a long time, and everyone seemed to have had a turn dancing with Helena and Leon. Towards the beginning of a catchy hit song, Chris and Leon began to dance with one another making the whole crowd laugh and clap. Helena was laughing so hard that she had tears coming down her face as the two men did the waltz together. Jill came over to Helena and motioned at her while she giggled uncontrollably.

"You think they are secretly seeing one another behind our backs?"

Helena laughed hard as she found her hand resting on Jill's shoulder.

"At this point, it wouldn't shock me."

"They got a hell of a bromance!"

They heard Claire say from afar as everyone laughed at her statement. After Chris and Leon finished up their routine together, they both were met with a huge roar of applause as they went back over to their women. They conversed for a while and went their separate ways. As Helena and Leon began to talk about what they were going to do after the dancing, Claire showed up before them arm in arm with Markus. He smiled sweetly at Leon and Helena as Claire looked up at him.

"Guys this is Markus Sinclair, the SURGE mission coordinator. Markus, this is Leon and Helena."

Markus gently shook both Helena's and Leon's hand before responding.

"It's an honor to meet the both of you. Claire speaks of nothing else."

Leon nodded at him and gave Markus a firm look.

"Likewise. Speaking of which my dad's name was Markus as well."

"Funny how these things work, wouldn't you say?"

Markus stated politely as Helena glanced at his features while Leon and him conversed. He was wearing a grayish white tux and had his brown hair slicked back. He also had some small glasses and his green eyes were full of wonder, especially when he would sneak a glance back at Claire who was just ecstatic to be near his presence. Claire took notice of Helena studying her new beau, and she came over to the bride's side and whispered.

"So what do you think?"

Helena took once more glance before responding.

"He looks and sounds rather nice. He and Leon are hitting it off quite well."

"He's a big fan of you and Leon believe it or not. But really what do you think?"

"Well he doesn't seem dangerous now that I'm seeing him person. I think you picked a handsome guy, Claire."

She beamed with delight and then her eyes met Markus's as he took her hand and led her back over towards him. Markus then made eye contact with Helena and began speaking to her.

"You look very beautiful tonight Ms. Kennedy. Would it be alright if I can spare a dance with the bride?"

Leon nodded and urged Helena to go ahead and do it. Helena breathed in a bit as she took Markus's hand and he led her out to the dance floor. While they were doing that, Claire and Leon began to dance as well and Leon made absolutely sure not to get too close to Claire as Chris was watching them both like a hawk. Chris made a motion to Leon, almost implying he'd break his neck until Claire shot him a dirty look after catching him.

"Thank you Claire."

Leon stated as he laughed seeing Chris look disappointed at his sister.

"Don't mention it, he deserves it."

Helena took notice of the situation that occurred and found herself lightly grinning. She then brought her attention back to Markus who was smiling at her tenderly. He then spun her around before they met each other again.

"Claire tells me you don't trust me."

Helena was taken aback by Markus's words and she found herself nodding.

"I would be lying if I said I didn't."

"I don't blame you. Coming from something as bad as The Family would make me nervous as well. Truth is, I'm a huge admirer of you and Leon and since I am the mission coordinator alongside Hunnigan, I'd like to get to know the two of you better because I wish to redeem myself for the mess that has occurred. Tell me, what can I do to prove to you I'm not going to hurt either your husband or yourself? Name it and it will be done."

"Just don't hurt Claire. If Leon and I have any suspicions you may be plotting something, we'll get you before anything bad will happen. I'll even guarantee your head on a platter."

Markus smiled while secretly gulping a bit. He could feel Helena's sentimental tone yet could feel her rage already penetrate him. Markus quickly regained his composure and nodded at Helena in a mutual agreement.

"Well then you'll have nothing to fear. I wouldn't dream of hurting Claire, and I know having her friends hurt would make her suffer. You and Leon have nothing to worry about."

"Good to know."

Helena and Markus smiled at one another, feeling that their thoughts were mutual as they continued to dance.

The rest of the evening went well, and even though Leon and Helena were to take their leave and enjoy the rest of the night to themselves the party was going to continue long through the night. The crowd of their guests cheered and hollered at them as they walked out of the facility together, but not long before Helena tossed away her bouquet of roses to the ladies. Instead of it going according to plan, the men were fighting over it instead. Everyone, including Leon and Helena were laughing as it came down to Jake and Chris fighting over it now until Claire came over and stole it. She looked up at Markus longingly as they gazed into each other's eyes and winked at Leon and Helena. They took off in Leon's car together as everyone chased them down the road and waved. The couple sighed when they were in the car, all by themselves and no more people to converse with. Leon gently grabbed Helena's hand and massaged it tenderly. She looked up at him with a sincere smile, appreciating his gesture. Helena then noticed they were going on a different road and she looked up at Leon with concern.

"The way home was back there."

She stated as Leon made a left with the car.

"I know, but I think this is something you need to do."

Helena looked at Leon with curiosity until she became familiar with the direction they were heading after fifteen minutes of driving. Her heart skipped a little as she grew nervous when they came upon the grave yard where Deborah was laid to rest. Leon parked the car and he opened up Helena's side of the door. She nervously took his hand as he led her over to Deborah's grave. Helena smiled warmly when she took notice of the flowers and decorations nearby. Helena found herself kneeling in front of Deborah's grave as she traced the lettering of her tombstone, taking notice of the carnations and daffodils that littered the area. Leon left her alone for a while as he headed back to the car. He watched Helena as she found a small envelope nearby the tombstone, on the front of it was Deborah's writing. Helena cocked an eye brow, curious as to what it was until she opened it up.

**Helena—**

**I know me and you have not been getting along for quite some time. Our fighting has become worse and deep down I feel sorry about everything I have called you recently. I'm not the best sister in the world, nor do I wish to pretend I am. Helena, have you ever had a feeling where you know you will die young? For some reason I can't help but keep on getting this vibe that something bad might happen to me. It's hard to talk to you sometimes especially with your training to become an agent just like dad, so allow me to say these things and how proud I am to have you as my big sister just in case something happens down the road that we can't stop.**

**I don't hate you. In fact half the time I am envious of you. You're never afraid to be yourself. I can remember even when mom was trying to convert you to become a girly girl, you never once gave in and stuck to being a tomboy. I wish I had your bravery; all I wanted to do was be like everyone else. You didn't care what anyone else thought, you were you no matter what the cost. Over the years I have lost my uniqueness because I didn't allow myself to be me, but instead molded and shaped myself into what everyone expected of me. Helena, you are the most beautiful woman I ever encountered. I'm not just saying that because I am your sister. To me, you'll always be the shining star even if you never wear makeup or if I never see you in a dress.**

**When dad left, our whole world fell apart as did mom. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for taking care of me after all these years. You've been a better mother to me than our own. Thank you for sacrificing your own education to better mine, thank you for standing up for me when others tried to hurt me, and thank you for loving me even though I don't deserve it half the time. During high school it was tough, and you were the only one there for me. Not my huge circle of friends, not the boys I hung out with at parties; you were the one that mattered most. To this day, sometimes I cry myself to sleep knowing that I have hurt you and sometimes knowing I take you for granted. Most people would have abandoned hope when mom and dad left us in their own way, but you took the challenge and made things right for us.**

**I'm sorry for all the times I stole your boyfriends…and for all the times I called you horrible names. Everything negative that I have done to you is unjustified. I wish I could make this all up to you, but alas I have a strong feeling I won't be living long enough to see things through. Helena, if you happen to get married at some point and if I am not there in person, I'll always be with you in spirit. I'll watch you go up there and pour your heart out to your lover, and I'll watch you dance, and I'll watch you kiss him. I'll watch you be happy as you start a family, and if you ever have children (which you say time and time again you never will…) I'll guard them with everything I am. If you are reading this and I am not around, and if you happen to be with someone all I want to say is congratulations and I hope you have a happy future. I'm sure the two of you are going to be happy, even if it is someone I don't like. If I'm not around anymore, and you still aren't with anybody I'll make sure you're going to end up with someone who will love you, and see how truly beautiful you are as a person. Mark my words Lena, I will make certain of this!**

**I don't plan on giving this letter to you, in fact I see it more as a way of venting but if this should ever come across you at any point know that I love you deeply my big sister. If my feelings are correct, and something is going to happen I know that no matter what you'll try to save me no matter what the circumstances may be. But Helena, if you ever fail to save me whether it's me harming myself or someone else hurting me, know that I will never blame you for what fate might lie for me. I'll never hate you. **

**I'm so proud of you Helena, very proud. I'm honored to call you my sister and I love you with everything that I am. I may seem mad at you, but honestly I can't wait to see you after I get that much needed break from college. I think it's so awesome you are going to be at Tall Oaks and going to the campus where I am attending to guard the president. I couldn't be happier for you, you finally are getting the dream you always wanted and I know you'll be twice the agent as dad ever was.**

**No matter what happens from now on, don't face your life with fear but with courage. You're going to do great things Helena, I know it. See you in Tall Oaks!**

**Love forever, Debby**

Helena's body was frozen as she repeated the last line. Debby was a nickname Helena used to call Deborah when she was a baby and that did it in for her. She started to cry as she clenched Deborah's final letter of words to her chest. For such a long time ever since Deborah had died, she felt guilty for killing her though she had become a monster. After scanning the letter once more, for the first time in a long while, Helena finally felt like she got some closure. She checked the date to make sure this wasn't fake, seeing that it was set exactly one week since the Tall Oaks incident and the night after they had a huge fight about searching for their mother. A part of her nerves spun out of control knowing her own sister felt like something bad was going to occur .Helena gently wiped away the tears that were streaming down her face as she turned around and could see Leon facing her, smiling as he knelt down beside her.

"H-how, where did you get this?"

Helena said in between her cries.

"I found this amongst Simmons belongings in his office a long time ago when everything was being cleared out. I wanted to give this to you, but with everything you were going through with your PTSD and all I didn't think it was the right time. But now though I think you needed to see this cause I know you were probably thinking about Deborah this night. I'm sorry I kept this hidden for so long—"

Before Leon could mutter anything else, Helena fell into his arms and Leon held her close to him. They held onto each other for a long time as they stared at Deborah's tombstone. Helena's tears melted into the earth as she let go of Leon and traced the lettering once more. Leon smiled at her as she looked back up at Leon then focused her attention back to the tombstone. Despite the terrible ordeal that had happened long ago between the two sisters, Helena felt like Deborah played her part in something big. Had it not been for Deborah, she never would have met Leon. Though Helena wished Leon and her could have met in better circumstances and though they had other things that brought them closer to one another, she had to admit it was her sister who brought them together in the first place. Helena closed her eyes, as she looked up at the sky.

"Thank you Deborah."

For the first time since Tall Oaks, Helena felt free.


	6. Chapter 6: Jealousy

**Do forgive me if the writing is a bit sloppy with this one, I am still beating myself up over the editing. Anyhow with my college classes this may be the last chapter for a few days, hang in there though I am writing little by little whenever I can. As always, review or leave me some feedback or ideas if you wish. I appreciate you all being there backing me up! Enjoy!**

Sleep. It was the only thing Leon and Helena could think of when they arrived back home after returning from the graveyard. The exhaustion and sheer weight of the three hundred people that attended their wedding was beginning to settle, and so were the weeks of traveling. Leon unlocked the door to their apartment while he carried Helena in his arms since she had fallen asleep in the car on the way back. Now and again he'd look down at her face seeing how at peace she was and he began admiring her. There was more that he had wanted to say to Helena this night, and he had another surprise for her once they were to return home but upon seeing how tired she was he decided another day would be fine. He figured he had all the time in the world now that they were to begin their one week vacation.

Leon gently kicked the door to their room open as quietly as he could then sat Helena down onto the bed. Once in a while she groaned a bit as she stirred in her sleep. Leon pulled the covers off and managed to slip Helena underneath them and he tucked her in but not before stripping off her clothes and hanging up her gown in the nearby closet. In this moment seeing her like this he felt nothing but happy to have her, and happy to once again proclaim Helena as his family. After getting her situated he sighed a bit and checked the time. It was already pushing midnight and he yawned finally feeling his body weigh itself down. Leon rubbed his eyes as he took off his jacket followed by his shirt and shoes. He stretched a bit, feeling the tension in his muscles relax as he groaned somewhat before falling into the bed next to Helena.

Words couldn't describe how relieved he felt to be back in the apartment and lying in bed right now getting ready to sleep. Two weeks of endless work and staying up until five in the morning almost on a daily basis was already starting to show on Leon. He looked up at the ceiling, thinking about how much longer he was going to have to put up with this but then his thoughts began to travel afar when he looked over and could see Helena's beautiful eyes looking right up at him. He smiled and pulled her close to him as she gently massaged the back of his scalp right before he kissed her.

"I thought you were sleeping."

"I can't sleep until I get to say goodnight to you."

Leon smiled as his eyes drifted in and out of consciousness. Helena lightly tapped his head to wake him up and he groaned a bit as he pulled Helena closer to him.

"I'm so tired Lena. Work is going to be the death of me one day."

"I know. It's been hard adjusting back to the chaos. Heck the BSAA and CIA branch in Europe gives their employees much more leisure time than over here. Aren't you going to tell me goodnight?"

"I always do, but before we take care of that tell me are you alright?"

Helena closed her eyes as she could hear Leon's heartbeat. She sighed a little bit before responding back to him.

"I'm actually feeling quite happy. Thanks for everything earlier. I feel like I can move on more so than ever. Are you feeling okay yourself?"

Leon found himself nodding as he gently stroked Helena's hair, but not long before kissing her forehead and taking in her scent. He really missed being around her and having her to himself especially after being away for a long time. True they did manage to see each other in the office the other day, but there was something about being home with Helena that made Leon relax and feel like he didn't have any worries. Leon's thoughts were traveling as he could feel his eyes grow heavier.

"I'm so happy to be with you again and back in our own home that I can't even express it."

Helena felt herself lightly giggle as she could hear Leon yawn in between his sentence.

"You think the reason as to why you can't express it is because you're getting old and can't think straight anymore?"

Leon smirked a bit and shook his head. At this point in the relationship he was use to Helena's teases especially about his age.

"Possibly. Lena,"

"Yeah?"

Leon backed off a little bit from Helena so that way she could look up at his face.

"I'm going to do everything I can to make this week good for you."

"That sounds one sided don't you think?"

Helena stated with a sly smile as their foreheads met one another's while Leon stroked the side of Helena's arm.

"Fine, since you want things 'equal' between us I guess we can make this week good for the both of us. Do you want to go over to some of our favorite spots tomorrow, like where we use to hang out before we dated?"

Helena nodded as she could feel herself start to drift off.

"I'd love that. It would bring up some good memories."

"Alright, first thing tomorrow we are going to go into town and do whatever you wish. I love you."

"I love you too."

Leon smiled but not long before he captured Helena's lips with his own. Their kiss lasted for a little while until they both fell asleep in each other's arms. The only sounds they could hear were each other's breathing. To Helena it was the most wonderful silence she ever heard.

The week was going by smoothly and was refreshing to the pair. Leon and Helena managed to go to their favorite places and a few of the local restaurants they use to hang out at before they got together. Helena felt relaxed during the entire time and took in the refreshing sights and sounds that seemed all too familiar yet foreign. She never realized how she truly missed being back in the states and enjoying some certain things that Italy didn't have to offer. When Leon and she were in the park, Helena could only think of the times they went there before to share their personal thoughts and feelings. Leon laughed with her as they sat down near the park bench on Monday of their week off and they talked about the conversations they had years ago like when Leon asked if Helena had dated anyone. Helena felt so comfortable and happy ever since receiving Deborah's final letter that she didn't even think about the negative connotation associated with their favorite spot when she got shot by one of Kent's snipers years ago. In fact, Helena found herself becoming more and more alive with each passing day. She owed everything to Leon in her mind since he helped her finally achieve the mental freedom she needed in order to accept the past and move on. Though there was a part of her that wished he would have delivered Deborah's letter much sooner, Helena couldn't ever be mad at him especially with the love she had for the agent.

Wednesday they both took off to the book store and came back home shortly after getting a few things. They had a fun time playing chess for a couple of hours with Leon seeming to win every single game much to Helena's disappointment and frustration. Eventually she got tired of it and they ended up wrestling one another after Leon ticked off Helena by mocking her losing streak. The pair had a fun time with it though and found themselves laughing at the situation. After taking a break from that, Leon tried teaching Helena how to paint much to her embarrassment. Helena had never tried it before except during high school, and she couldn't help but laugh when Leon tried forcing her to pick up the brush after she struggled to get away from the scenario. It got to the point where Leon grabbed both her arms and controlled her movement and every stroke she made on the canvas as if she was his personal puppet. Helena was cracking up hard when he started kissing the side of her neck and tickling her with some of the scruff that was growing on his chin.

"Leon stop it! You're making me screw it up!"

"Funny, just a bit ago you were complaining about not having the talent and you said quote 'Leon I don't care how it turns out'."

Helena's laughter had become more infective especially when Leon quoted her. She could have sworn for a moment he sounded just like a woman when he did that. It briefly reminded her of watching the play he was in during his high school years on New Years when they both were rummaging through their old VHS tapes. Helena then tried to concentrate at the task at hand though, and she tried to remain grounded despite Leon messing with her.

"I'm starting to like it now, whatever the hell it is."

"Look at you, you're a natural Lena."

"If I am so great then why don't you quit being the back seat driver and let me finish?"

Leon smirked and began kissing her neck once more as Helena squirmed under his grasp.

"Because you'd be getting all the fun."

"You're so terrible! Let me go!"

Helena said in between her laughter. Leon rested his chin on her shoulder and looked up at the painting momentarily before turning his focus back to her.

"Personally, it looks like a squished version of me and you so far. Almost as if we're bugs getting killed on a windshield of a car."

"Now you're just being egotistical and weird Kennedy."

Leon shot a playful glare at Helena as she turned her neck to face him. Helena lunged and kissed his lips, and while she deepened it much to Leon's pleasure, he began to loosen up on his grip on Helena's arms giving her enough time to smirk underneath her lips. Before Leon could react, Helena broke out of the entrapment of his arms and hands then hit him upside the face with the brush leaving a long red mark streaking across his face. Helena fell backwards laughing as Leon squirmed and groaned while he glared at Helena, but not before pinning her to the ground and wiping his face on her shirt to get the paint off.

"Leon no! I just got this the other day! Don't ruin it!"

"You already ruined my face woman, you deserve it!"

"I'm no woman! I'm your wife!"

Leon looked up from her chest and smirked.

"Tell me, what's the difference?"

Helena rolled her eyes as she pushed away at Leon's face making him stumble back. Helena looked at her shirt, disgusted that it was ruined after only wearing it for a single day. Leon wrapped his arms around her as she pouted a bit.

"Don't be so down. I can always buy you another one."

"I don't want anything from you."

Helena said in a somewhat mocking tone as Leon nuzzled the side of her cheek making her giggle but only slightly. Leon's cell phone began to ring and he quickly pulled it out of his pocket and checked his message inbox. Leon smiled to himself as he got up and helped Helena get onto her feet.

"Looks like our take out is ready to go. You should go get another shirt and come get our food with me."

Helena crossed her arms and glared with a devious smirk on her face.

"Why would I want to go with a jerk?"

Leon leaned up to her and looked at Helena right in the eye, making her spine tingle. Even to this day whenever he would gaze at her longing like this she'd find herself melting for him.

"I'll eat you're rice and the fortune cookies if you don't."

Helena rolled her eyes; she knew he had won this game.

The pair walked several blocks to the restaurant to pick up their meals after Helena threw on another shirt. Leon and Helena were about halfway home when it started to rain really hard, making them groan out loud and laugh. To make matters worse it was spring time and the weather was running amok. One moment it would be sunny, the next back to the chilling sensation of rain coming into contact with the ground. Helena proclaimed over and over how pathetic she felt for not bringing a jacket as they both hurried to back to the apartment much to Leon's amusement. They both shook and shivered when they went inside the complex and made the long trek up the stairs to get back to their place. After a while they finally made it up to the top floor as Helena panted while looking at the food sadly, seeing that the box with its contents was drenched.

"Doesn't this remind you of anything?"

Leon said as he rummaged through his pocket to get the keys out.

"It just reminds me that I hate the rain."

Leon smiled lightly after hearing her say that. They both went inside and went to the kitchen and sat the food down. The pair stood there for a moment as droplets of water streamed down from their hair as they looked at the food discouraged.

"Brings back memories…once again I wasted thirty bucks on the same dish no less."

Helena's mind finally came to the realization of what Leon was talking about. She closed her eyes briefly and could remember two years ago this same scenario occurred. Helena opened her eyes back up and lightly laughed to herself as she could remember the day Leon and her went to the park after he made her breakfast that morning. They spent the whole day in town and went to the same place as this night and came home drenched. Helena sighed a bit then opened up the boxes and emptied the food into separate bowls.

"Well, even though the food is soaked that doesn't mean we can't eat it."

"True."

Leon said as he shrugged while he watched Helena put one of the bowls into the microwave. He couldn't help but admire how she looked right now especially with how her hair looked wild from being poured on by the rain. Leon tried looking away though as he took notice he was gazing at her body for far too long. Helena was watching though out of the corner of her eye and she came over to him and looked up at him with a smug look.

"Were you just checking me out?"

"No, of course not. But I must say you look sexy."

He said as he could feel his lips curl into a smile. Helena grinned at him and messed with his hair a bit.

"You know you look kind of cute with your hair like this. Maybe you should try something new."

"I don't think that is going to happen not even if you are married to me."

"Why not?"

"I can't see myself with a different hair style. It would be too weird."

Helena laughed a bit as she stroked Leon's wet bangs out from his eyes so she could gaze at him fully. She couldn't get over how pretty Leon's blue eyes looked and she found herself trapped after she kissed him. Leon began to deepen it until he caught something out of the corner of his eye. He could see tucked away behind the microwave was a small box with a red bow on the top. He stopped kissing Helena and slowly snaked his arm over and reached out for it. Helena took notice and gave a sorrowful look; it was Ada's gift from the wedding. Earlier on she had hidden it behind the microwave after going through some of the other gifts their friends had left. Helena could see Leon gazing upon the box puzzled by it. His eyes slowly met Helena's and he looked at her with a concerned look.

"Do you know what this is?"

He asked quietly, sensing a disturbance with Helena's attitude as she somewhat glared at the box lying in his palm. As much as she didn't want to tell him, Helena knew she had to let Leon know the truth about where it came from.

"Ada came to the wedding, well, snuck in. We met up on the balcony and she handed this to me. I still don't know what it is."

Without hesitating, Leon gently tugged the ribbon off of the box that was keeping it sealed. He carefully opened it, seeing there was a small butterfly clip. Leon recognized it right away; it was a present he had given to Ada a long time ago during their meet up after he had rescued Ashley, President Graham's daughter, from Spain. It pained him to see this lying in the palm of his hands as he carefully looked at it, taking in the details of the diamonds lodged on the wing tips. He had saved up for months before he was able to get this for her after Ada had mentioned at one point during their encounters she had adored them. Leon sighed a bit and his eyes worked their way up to Helena's face. She was only looking at the hair clip, noticing how sentimental it was to Leon based on his gestures. She couldn't help but glare at it. To Helena, it was just one more backstab and one more attempt at guilt tripping Leon into feeling sympathetic towards her, and in the dark corners of Helena's mind, it was Ada's attempt to bait him so he would go back to her. Leon then presented it to Helena after noticing the grimacing look she was giving off. He wanted to reassure her that everything was alright but he found his words becoming twisted in his head.

"You'd look really beautiful with it Lena."

Before he could catch himself, the words had already slipped out. Helena couldn't help but glare up at Leon feeling something inside of her churn with anger. He had realized now what Helena must have been feeling in this moment, and he worried that she was starting to assume that he wanted her to wear Ada's hair clip just so Leon could have the satisfaction of seeing a piece of Ada always with him.

"I'm not going to wear that nor accept it."

"I can get rid of it if you'd like—"

"Don't bother. It was her gift to me; I can get rid of it myself. Besides I would hate to find this popping up in our room some place where you'd keep it hidden."

Leon could feel his heart break a bit as the bitter words streamed from Helena's lips as she snatched the clip from his hands and tucked it into her pocket. If this item were on fire, Helena would be feeling it penetrate her skin and making her blood boil. Helena couldn't face Leon and she traveled over to the couch to get out of his presence. Leon sighed as he could recall a long time ago during the first year of their relationship he still carried old mementos from Ada even behind Helena's back after he reassured her that he was through with her. Leon could remember the fighting they had over it, and he understood the pain Helena was feeling so he got rid of all the stuff. He had promised Helena to never again do anything like that and after hearing her somewhat accuse him of attempting such a thing in the future, he could feel a part of him get mad .He followed her though and sat down by her side trying to be comforting.

"Lena you know I would never keep something like this behind your back. We've been through this, and I never once went back on my word."

Helena looked up at him, and Leon could slowly see the trust in her eyes dim.

"Look Leon I don't care, I just don't want any part of her around me. I was sympathetic to her before when you told me what happened to her but now enough is enough."

"Helena I couldn't just abandon her. It's not that simple I—"

"Then you should have thought about that before you married me! Look Leon, you don't belong to her! You don't even owe her anything now at this point since she doesn't have anything to keep you bound to her anymore!"

Leon was taken aback at Helena's anger, and he could feel his own emotions begin to stir.

"Hey she needed my help during that time! It was a terrible thing she had to face alone so I tried to counsel her! You even told me it was alright!"

"Of course I did! I thought it was just fine and I didn't even have a huge problem with it until I caught her kissing you during Operation Jarvis! Tell me Leon; did some part of you miss her when that happened?"

Helena and Leon's eyes met in a bitter glare before he began to raise his voice.

"I can't believe we are even having this conversation. You know damn well that I love you! I married you twice didn't I?"

Helena could sense the mockery in his voice as her fists began to clench up. Her anger was starting to spill over like boiling water.

"Just because you married me doesn't mean that it proves to me you can cut off Ada and get on with your life! You've told me yourself 'Helena let go of the past, Helena you need to let go of what happened so you can look forward to the future' I've had to hear you spoon feed that to me since the dawn of time and you don't even take your own damn advice!"

"Why the hell are you being so selfish!?"

"I'm being selfish!? You're the one who's been like that! You're selfish because you can't make up your mind still about which person you want to be with! Holding each of our love for you in the palm of your hands is sickening!"

"Helena I love you and only you! I've already proven myself enough! What the hell more do you want?"

Helena could feel her fists slam on the coffee table as she began to shout.

"I don't want you to see Ada ever again!"

Her yell was so powerful; it even made Leon's own blood shake. Helena took in a deep breath as her arms shook from the force of her blow. Helena quickly got up and took off for the room to go cool off and also to hide the fact that she was tearing up a bit. Leon found himself gripping at his face as he shook his head but not before hitting the couch real quick to relieve some tension. He sighed and slouched into the bedding of the couch as he could feel himself trying to cool down. Leon took notice that the clip had fallen out of Helena's pocket during her storming. His hands gently grasped it and he took a look at it hard. _How can something so small cause such damage?_ He thought as he clenched it in his fist and glared. Leon desperately wanted to throw it off the balcony of their apartment but he instead placed it on the counter knowing it should be left to Helena to be rid of it. He then retreated to another small room nearby and looked out the window as it rain.

A few hours went by and Helena was lying on the bed looking off into the distance. She felt her anger die down during this time as she began to think about how she lost it with Leon. A part of her felt guilty, but then again there was a deep part of her that felt like it was justified. Maybe she shouldn't have yelled, and maybe she shouldn't have sounded so cruel but Helena felt like she needed to get the message across. She sighed as she began beating herself up for losing it with Leon. During the last few weeks she even found herself being slightly snippy at him more so than usual even during their phone calls they'd give to one another during their missions apart. Now even as she was thinking to herself that it was right she were to confront Leon about Ada once more she couldn't help but feel like she was a fool. _We're married now; we are supposed to trust one another with anything…what is wrong with me? I have every right to be mad but I shouldn't be this upset over Ada. _Helena found herself saying in the corner of her mind as her eyes traced the door.

Helena got onto her feet and with some hesitance, opened up the door and ventured out. She quietly walked into the living room and found that Leon had already set up the futon, assuming that she wasn't going to let him back into their room for the rest of the night. He looked over at her sadly, and once she was deadlocked with him, Helena traveled over to him as he got up and pulled her into a strong embrace. No apologies were needed for they could already tell each one was sorry. Leon tried stroking her hair, still finding it damp in places as he looked down at her seeing the sorrow on her face and that she had remnants of tears on her face. His eyes shifted around a bit before he had let his feelings seep in. He forcefully grabbed her and pressed his lips to hers as hard as he could muster while Helena gasped, and she began to rummage through his hair while trying not to break their contact as he wrapped his arms around her tightly. They both fell onto the floor and Leon pinned Helena's arms to the ground as he kissed her neck ravishingly. Helena panted as she could feel him adjust his weight and could feel her body press against his chest. Helena leaned up and bit his ear a bit as he groaned. They both snaked their way during their carnage for one another and made it to the futon.

"Can't you see that I love you?"

Leon said in between gasps as Helena and he looked right into each other's eyes, taking the moment to really understand what the other was feeling despite their passions going insane for the other. Helena tried to look as honest and sincere as she could while trying to maintain herself from reaching up and capturing his lips again. She smiled at him as she breathed deeply.

"I'm sorry Leon, for everything."

He found his lips curving into a small smile as he gently replied back.

"Me too…"

The sun was glistening up in the sky and through the window a bit of the light shun through cascading a bright glare onto Helena. She mumbled a bit as she stirred in her sleep and her eyes shifted a little bit while she yawned. Helena then could see Leon sleeping beside her peacefully with his arm wrapped around her still and she made out the small scars that were on his body and chest. Helena found herself grinning a bit as she started to kiss his upper body. Leon let out a faint groan as he tried rolling onto his back to avoid her contact but she persisted and worked her way up to his neck.

"Woman are you trying to kill me?"

"Maybe a little bit."

She stated as she fell on top of him accidentally when her arms gave out, making Leon become fully aware of his surroundings as he gave out a light gasp. Leon looked up at Helena with eyes half way shut as she smiled at him and kissed his forehead.

"You better make me breakfast."

He muffled in between yawns as Helena shook her head.

"How about we do it together?"

"Only because I love you."

Leon stated begrudgingly as he flipped Helena off of him. She gave out a yelp and laughed when Leon got on top of her and began kissing the nape of her neck.

"What's this for?"

"This is for making me wake up early when I needed to sleep."

Helena was laughing hard and Leon was slightly giggling to himself as they kissed one another. It began to get deeper but before anything could be done about it, Leon and Helena's phones both went off crazily. They groaned together as Leon look over near the coffee table and could see his phone buzzing wildly alongside Helena's.

"What should we do?"

Helena stated in a gasp.

"Just ignore it."

"What if it's an emergency from work?"

"Just fucking ignore it, it's our week off and I want you."

Leon stated as he continued to kiss Helena. The calling ceased momentarily then picked up once more causing them both to pout.

"One of us better go get it."

Helena said as she looked up at Leon as happy as she could. Leon glanced up and down at her body with a smirk as he got up and headed over to the table. He quickly silenced Helena's cell phone and then picked up his own, seeing on the caller id it was Hunnigan. Leon sighed and put the phone on speaker so Helena could listen in on what was going on.

"I thought Helena and I were guaranteed a no interruptions honeymoon, mission or not."

"Leon now is not the time for that! I'm so sorry about this guys but this is a matter of life and death!"

Leon's eyes widened as did Helena's as they could hear some blood chilling screams come from the other end of it.

"Hunnigan!"

Leon somewhat shouted when he heard her gasp. The end of the line was quiet for a few moments before they could hear her breathing heavily.

"S-sorry about that! Guys, there is an evacuation going on right now at the facility!"

"What happened?"

Helena asked urgently as she grasped the blankets to her body and came over to Leon's side.

"There's been an outbreak! Someone unleashed a strain of the T-virus! Two of the lower levels have been sealed! God help us right now, its growing worse by the second! Someone did this! Someone snuck into Professor Jarvis's lab and unleashed it! SURGE and the BSAA have been deployed but we need the entire backup we can muster right now! There are survivors trapped in the lower base areas!"

The hairs on the back of Leon and Helena's neck stiffened as their blood turned cold upon hearing the fear surrounding Hunnigan's voice. They both looked at one another, and the nightmares and haunting of what the pair had encountered during their missions regarding B.O.W's surfaced. Leon could feel the pit of his stomach churn as he felt helpless not being right there on the spot to help.

"Hunnigan we're on our way. Just stick with the main evacuation route and we'll be right there to help with the survivors."

Leon stated as he quickly hung up the phone while Helena and him rushed to the bed room to get dressed and get their weapons ready.


	7. Chapter 7: Rush

**IMPORTANT, PLEASE READ**

**Hey guys, so sorry this didn't come out until later! I have an important announcement though: Because of my college schedule, it looks like I'm going to be updating a chapter every Friday now, once a week. I hate to have to do that but my hands are tied, but I promise you the chapters will be as lengthy as I can possibly make them. Thank you for your patience and please as always feedback would be nice! Enjoy!**

Helena stuck her head out of the window of the car while Leon drove fast. The wind hit her face very hard and she almost felt like a tornado came through at her eyes. As they approached the government headquarters, Helena could see the hundreds of people running out from the main building doors. Despite the air ravaging at her ears, Helena could hear everyone screaming at the top of their lungs. Leon took notice of how many people were flocking, and pulled over in an area where he wouldn't be able to hit someone unexpectedly. Immediately, Helena and he both came out of the vehicle, each one of them wearing their gear such as a bullet proof vest, a few flash grenades and quite a few Springfield Armory guns, 22 Calibers, and Desert Eagles at their disposal. Helena gripped the customized one Leon had acquired for her years ago, and she began to load it.

Leon cocked the gun and he motioned for Helena to stay close to him as they headed past the crowd of people. By now there was two choppers hovering from above and a barricade was introduced while some BSAA agents kept everyone from entering the building. Leon and Helena finally approached them after being nearly stampeded by some of the government workers flocking to safety. Helena then caught the eyes of one of the agents and began to speak up.

"Can you take us to Chris Redfield?"

"Yes Ms Kennedy,"

The BSAA officer made a clearing for both Leon and Helena to pass through whereupon he motioned for them to follow. Leon and Helena walked a bit of a ways to a small tent that was fixed up near the south side of the main entryway. The agent beckoned them to enter in which they complied. Inside they could see Chris and Jake talking amongst themselves and a couple of scouts planning their next move. Once Helena and Leon approached them, the men immediately locked eyes with the couple and the fear plus aggression could be seen within their eyes.

"Thank god you both arrived."

Chris said as he flung out one of the maps of the interconnected network of offices to determine which safe zone they should take. Leon crossed his arms as Helena began to inspect the working area.

"Helena and I heard there was an outbreak in the lower levels of the facility. Chris, can you tell us what happened?"

"What happened to Hunnigan?"

Helena asked shortly after Leon's question. Chris studied the two of them and could see the concern in their faces. He sighed and shook his head as Jake began to talk with another agent.

"Alright let's take this one thing at a time. From what some of the survivors told us everyone seemed fine in the lower levels. No one went into sector sixteen to mess around with any viruses and according to our security scouts and cameras; nothing was touched nor taken within the last forty eight hours. It's safe to assume no one messed around with the research in regards to finding a cure for these viruses. Out of the blue a man started coughing up blood after he took a drink, then he shortly passed on and awakened as a B.O.W. Soon it started happening to many others that everyone who has made it from down there lost track of who was patient zero. Some SURGE members verified that the virus wasn't transported through the air after we had no choice but to turn on the full security system. Currently there are over one hundred people still left down there but we can't go in yet until SURGE gets some of the B.O.W's out of the upper levels they managed to sneak into."

"What's Jake still doing here?"

Helena asked with a puzzling look as did Leon. Jake and Sherry were suppose to be leaving today and heading back to the BSAA European branch and back to their jobs. The couple found it odd how he was still around as Chris took notice of Jake's frustration.

"Sherry is down there right now. Earlier on Claire and she decided to go visit Markus then all hell broke loose."

"Markus…"

Leon found himself slowly saying as he and Helena's eyes deadlocked with one another. They both assumed they were thinking the same thing as their suspicions came up. Helena quickly turned her attention to Jake as he paced around the tent with anger in his voice as he mumbled to himself.

"This is so stupid! I should have gone with them both!"

"Jake you can't blame yourself. I'm sure my sister and Sherry are both going to be alright. As long as they are together nothing is going to harm them."

"Yeah but—"

Helena gently gripped Jake's shoulder as he glanced up and down, and then focused his attention to Leon who merely nodded to show that he could relate to the young man's frustration. Jake took in a sigh and motioned for Chris to continue on explaining the events to Leon and Helena. Chris further mentioned that there were probably over three hundred plus people infected down in the lower levels, and that based on a cell phone call from a survivor Sherry and Claire along with the rest of the survivors were barricaded in one of the meeting rooms. Based on that evidence alone, Leon and Helena deduced that there wouldn't be much time before the infected would overcome the large doors and soon the survivors would be sitting ducks. They began to make plans as to how the group was going to get into the lower base levels without having to encounter too many B.O.W's.

A half hour later or so after everybody understood their orders and what tasks were needed to be done, the team broke up. Chris, Jake and SURGE were ordered to take on the front line site where most of the B.O.W's were at and dispose of them. A second team comprising of BSAA agents were to then follow up with an attack after Chris's team shoots the majority of the infected and serve as scouts. Since Leon and Helena had a good reputation for being skilled at working as a team and in smaller settings, they were tasked to go in by themselves through an emergency vent system. By taking the vent path they would come into the main office area were the infection occurred .The couple would get the opportunity to find out what exactly happened down there and even find and secure a safe route for Chris and his team to go through, thus ensuring the chances of most of the survivors living. As Helena and Leon began to crawl through the entryway through the large vent system, something was amiss in the air as Helena led the way. She briefly stopped; catching Leon's attention as he almost bumped into her.

"Helena, why did you stop?"

"Leon, do you smell that?"

Leon turned his head towards the right and closely leaned down to a small little air shaft. He knew that scent anywhere. The putrid smell of bitter rotten flesh found its way up his nose. Leon could also make out the fair moans coming from the infected that were probably not that far from the vent system. He counted his blessings that he and Helena were up on a high level, therefore the infected wouldn't be able to see them but as Leon motioned for Helena to get going there was something else on his mind. Though Helena and he were safe for the time being and blocked away from eye sight, that didn't necessarily mean that they were off the hook just yet. Leon could recall some of the different strains of T-Virus that now were scattered across the globe after many bioterrorists began mixing their own chemical cocktails with it the deadly disease. A particular one, TV-826, came to his head. He had encountered this strain while he was in Australia tailing a hit man who tried to assassinate one of the USA's ambassadors back in 2008. The infected were beyond hostile, and they had an accurate sense of smell. Leon could remember hiding behind a huge metal door and they still were able to sniff him out without even taking a second to think. Some part of him feared that this strain was running amok in the government facility and as the crawl space became larger and he made his way to Helena's side, he began to worry for his wife's safety. He knew that if these were TV-826 types it would be difficult to protect her and himself because they could sprint much like a Crimson Head but the worst part was they could travel in packs if need be.

After slowly making their way through the vent system for the last ten minutes or so, they finally reached the end point. A small filtration covering was above their exit and Helena and Leon took out a couple of small tools and began to unscrew the covering. After it landed on the ground, Leon jumped down from the vent first and held out one of his desert eagles. He took a stance and began to inspect the area. The labs were quiet, and no signs of a struggle or nothing dangerous appeared to be lurking within the perimeter. Leon motioned for Helena to come down and follow him to which she did after taking in a breath. After making sure the area was secure, Helena and Leon began to look through some of the office spaces and lab testing areas. Chris was right, nothing had been tampered with from the looks of things and logically they both deduced that the infected were probably up in a higher level which they needed to go work their way up to. Helena came over to a computer which was still running and began to take a look at some things.

"Hey Leon, come take a look at this with me."

Leon came over to Helena from the other side of the lab and he leaned down to get a closer look.

"What did you find hon?"

Helena couldn't help but smile hearing him say that especially during something so serious.

"I'm not sure but it looks like a report about vaccine trials and such."

"Alright, let's take a look then. It may help us figure out what happened before everything went to hell."

The couple began to slowly read the progress report.

**DAILY STATUS FOR H6-901867**

**6:00AM: TV-768, TV-900, TV-826, and TV-855 have been accessed to begin testing H6-901867 vaccine**

**7:30AM: TV-768, TV-900, TV-826, and TV-855 tests have been negative.**

**8:25AM: H6-901867 has been accessed by SURGE scientists to test out on T-Veronica virus types to see if vaccine works.**

**9:50AM: H6-901867 has been returned safely to holding area.**

**10:46AM: TV-826 and TV-768 access approved. Samples obtained.**

**_Signed off by Markus P. Sinclair_**

Leon and Helena's heartbeats began to slow a bit as they looked at the name and ran over it a few times with their eyes. Helena began to shake her head as she could feel her blood boil. Though the pair didn't want to jump to conclusions they couldn't help but feel the hairs on the back of their neck stand up.

"If this is accurate that puts Markus on the spot about a half hour before the breakout occurred. Given the fact that these are TV-826 and TV-768 strains, they can infect people in a quick amount of time, almost instantaneous if your blood type happens to be o or even b."

Leon said in a stern voice as he began to look over some other documents on the computer as Helena got up from the desk and crossed her arms.

"How could Markus access any of these virus strains especially since he is only just a mission coordinator?"

Helena asked bitterly as Leon began to punch in some information into the computer.

"Well at our wedding he did say his secondary expertise was on T-Virus experimentation, and I mean on finding cures not experimenting on humans."

"Maybe that is what he wants us to believe. That is he doing good when really he's just playing everybody, just like Kent did…"

Leon gently rubbed the side of Helena's leg as he could hear the concern in her voice.

"We can't continue to be paranoid about The Family tailing us. Though this is really fishy, we can't afford to jump to conclusions but as of now Markus should be our top suspect but until the both of us get more information this is only circumstantial evidence since none of the security footage from Chris and Jake show himself entering the lab and all."

"Whatever the case may be, I'm not going to go easy on him."

"Let's just hope that this doesn't end in violence."

"I hope Claire and Sherry are alright."

Leon nodded in agreement to Helena's statement as he shook his head and got up from the computer. There wasn't anything else of use on there, just simple notes and documents about vaccines and cures that have either passed or failed.

"It looks like we need to get up to the upper level now and make our way to find the survivors."

"Right."

Leon and Helena braced themselves as they began to slowly make their way through the different rooms and corridors of the labs while taking extreme caution. They both were in tune with the environment and its surroundings as they came upon a ransacked area. Papers and office supplies plus a pint of coffee were spilt everywhere. There were also distinguished claw marks on the left hand side of the walls, and a huge blood trail led out to the main hall area. Helena lightly gulped a bit as she took notice of several cups of water that were on many of the desks. Each one of them looked like they barely had been sipped. Despite it being somewhat odd, she didn't pay heed to it as Leon and she made their way past the blood trail and out into the main area. A part of the lighting system was off, leaving some areas of the hallway pitch black. Leon could feel his heart flutter a bit in fear as he and Helena both took out small flashlights and attached them to their designated weapons. Helena's customized Springfield Armory was glimmering as she held it close to her, taking aim just in case. The couple slowly inched themselves around the corner and they already felt a moment of dread as they could see two of the infected eating away at a victim, slowly pulling out his lower intestine and breaking apart his rib cage.

Their skin was a dark green tinge of gray and their muscles were glimmering as tiny samples of their skin began to peel off. It reminded Helena of a sunburn gone to the extremes as one of the four infected began scratching at itself wildly as it let out a blood curdling groan before sinking its teeth into the victims neck. They all each had distinctive small claws, and their eyes were a bright yellow green with a small slit in the middle. They looked horrifying, and at the same time despite losing their humanity, Helena could have sworn that the entire time they were feasting upon the flesh of that poor man on the ground, they looked like they were in pain. Leon's fears were coming to life with each second he managed to get a look at their distinctive features, they definitely were infected by the TV-826 strand and he could feel a small bead of sweat fall from his face and hit the ground.

The moment that small bead of water hit the ground, the infected fell silent as they began to tune into their surroundings. The male whose back was turned to Helena's and Leon's direction twitched as it slowly turned its head to the side. Helena let out a faint gasp as the entire eye ball seemed to pop out of place and looked right at her. In that moment, the creature grinned before it and the others began to charge at Leon and Helena.

"Helena, run!"

"You don't have to tell me twice!"

They both began to take off as the ravenous monsters began the chase. Leon's adrenaline was rushing throughout his system as he and Helena had to make sharp turns at every corner. Helena grabbed a hold of Leon's hand so that they wouldn't lose each other during their runaway from the beasts as they could hear them hissing and moaning. Helena looked back for a few seconds and could see huge amounts of saliva fly from the deceased's rotten mouth. She made a grimacing look as Leon and she managed to take cover in a nearby office whose door was wide open. They immediately flipped a desk over and used it as a shield as they began to fire off several rounds at the monsters.

"Helena these aren't normal T-Virus types! Aim for their legs and chest!"

"What about their heads?!"

"It will only stun them! Hit their hearts!"

Helena nodded as she took out another round of bullets and lodged them into her Springfield and took aim. She managed to shoot clear into the male's chest as it fell down and began having seizure like symptoms before passing out. Needless to say that wasn't the end of their problems as another six began to barge into the room. Leon grabbed Helena by the shoulder and motioned for her to run with him as they both continued to fire off their guns, hoping to at least slow them down as they began to trample over their infected whom had already been taken down. Helena and Leon ran through several rooms and managed to find a way back out into the hallway, but this time they encountered another ten. The infected took one look at Helena and Leon and began to sprint like crazy. Helena knew the two of them were trapped for the six had them from one side, and now these guys had them cornered off. She tried to think really hard of a means of escape and she quickly took notice of the elevator.

"Leon hurry over to it!"

She shouted as she began to take off towards the metal doors after a zombie so conveniently slumped over and pushed the button to access the machine after Leon put a bullet right into its chest. Leon headed over to Helena and blocked her as he stuck both his right and left arm out with two Desert Eagles ready to open fire. He began shooting at the infected in every direction he could possibly think of until the doors dinged and Helena and he jumped right in. Helena took out a Caliber to partner up alongside her Springfield and began to fire as the infected tried to swarm the elevator. Helena and Leon knew there was no way they were going to get out of there alive if they couldn't stop the infected from trying to pry their rotting hands from the doors. Swiftly they both kicked out their right legs and managed to hit two of them right in the face, forcing the B.O.W's to fly back as the doors shut before anything could rummage through. Leon and Helena took this moment to breathe and get their bearings straightened out.

"That was a close one."

Leon said in a slightly happy tone as Helena looked at him puzzled.

"How could you be sounding somewhat alright after that happened?"

"Because I have you with me, I don't feel as stressed."

He smiled at her, causing Helena to lightly blush and grin back.

"Do you think there is going to be more waiting for us and that as soon as this door opens they are going to tear us limb from limb?"

Leon took a moment to ponder in his thoughts as his mind began to register Helena's question. Since Chris hadn't yet communicated with the pair via transmission, they wouldn't know if the upper levels were mostly secure. Leon began to look around the elevator and noticed the small doorway vent on the top of the ceiling. He quickly jumped up and managed to grab onto a handle and pulled it completely off the elevator. Helena looked upon him puzzled and slightly confused as to what he was doing.

"Leon,"

"If we climb to the top part of the elevator, then climb our way up to the next floor using the cables, we stand a better chance of not running into those things."

"You sure that is a good idea?"

"It beats getting eaten alive as soon as he we hit that next floor."

Helena saw his point as Leon motioned for Helena to come over to him. Leon knelt down and held out his hands in a cup like position as Helena propped a foot into his hands. Leon then lunged his arms up as Helena jumped and climbed on top of the elevator. Leon followed suit as Helena grabbed his arms and pulled him up to be with her. The elevator came to a halt and it dinged shortly, and as soon as the elevator opened up about ten of the infected came rushing into it, smelling the air and making ravenous sounds as they tried looking for the walking pieces of flesh that were Helena and Leon. Helena made brief eye contact with one of them, but not long before Leon shot at the buttons to the elevator. It caused the machine to die and stay in its position, giving the pair enough time to begin climbing the cables and make their way to a safer ground or, as Helena was looking up more, to the air vent system once again.

As they were climbing, Helena began to think about the time Leon and her had to do this in China after the elevator they were on exploded. Ever since then she always kind of had a weird impulse to hate heights. She kept her eye on Leon though the entire time they were making their trek up the cables and everything was going according to plan until they heard a stomp, and a hiss, and when the pair looked down there was about three of the infected with flesh hanging from their lips who began to do something so terrifying it even made Leon swallow his own heart: they were climbing after them, and they were calculating which directions they should take to get to the pair.

"Helena climb faster!"

"I'm trying Leon!"

Helena could feel her muscles in her upper arms stretch and bend as she tried to snake her body out more to obtain higher ground. She panted hard as she tried rushing up the cables and she slipped. Her hands were in the air and she began to fall, luckily for her Leon managed to grab Helena's left arm before letting her continue any further. Leon was in a tight spot now himself, with all his weight going to his right arm and trying to support Helena and himself he knew at some point they were going to tumble down into the hoard below them. The other alternative was they would be attacked by the big three who were now descending upon the couple as they groaned and pulled their weight up the cables. No matter how Leon looked at it, Helena and he were both seriously screwed.

"Helena, I'm going to try and swing you up so you can get the cables ahead of me! Try to swing your body up as I'm doing it!"

"Right!"

Leon took a deep breath and began to swing Helena back and forth. She could feel the force pick up a bit and as soon as she swung for the third time, Leon tossed her up and Helena could feel her body arch up towards the cables. She was merely inches away from not obtaining them but luckily she managed to pull herself back onto it and began to climb once more. Leon smiled happily to see that his last ditch effort to save Helena worked but there was no time to celebrate as he looked down and could see there was another four of the infected making their way to the top of the elevator. Helena's eyes widened as she could see the vent not that far ahead, but to her shock and disappointment one of the infected managed to get into it and it jumped at the cables. Helena let out a scream as she came face to face with the green tinged monster. She could make out the intricate details of its saggy face and it's bloated like appearance as the creature tried swapping and biting at her like a ravage dog. Leon's eyes went wide in fear as he tried to make the climb faster, but then he felt a huge weight on his left leg as he took notice that a female managed to grab his foot. She looked at Leon dead in his eyes and a smirking like grin found its way upon her face as she tried to bite him. Leon took out one of his army knives from his pocket and began to stab down at her. The female moaned with a scream and blood protruded down her entire face like a fountain as Leon made a quick slash to her throat. She eventually let go of him and tumbled down to the rest of the horde which made quick work of her as they began to rip open her body. Leon made a grimacing look as he could see the creature was still alive and trying to get out of the clutches of her brethren while they pulled out her intestines and muscle tissue. In that moment, some part of Leon felt sympathetic towards the monster.

"Getting eaten by your own…that's just terrible."

He muttered under his breath as he brought his focus back to Helena. She was stabbing at the creature with her gun while she managed to kick it. It fell down a short ways but managed to grab the cables and pulled itself up. Leon was about halfway there now, and he was close to getting to the creatures foot, the zombie took notice of Leon then hissed as he clawed at Helena's feet. She managed to dodge it as she swung herself away from it, but that came at a price. While she was distracted by the zombie trying to bite off her legs another one of the three came from the vent and leapt at her. Helena and Leon both took noticed and shoved their weight onto one side of the cable, causing it to sway and allowing the creature to fall and not get its grip onto anything. Before it fell however, it managed to cut at Helena's shoulder and she let out a yell while blood spilt from her and the droplets found themselves in the mouth of the creature trying to get her feet. It began licking its lips trying to savor every moment of the teasing taste as Leon grabbed the male by the shoulder and hit it as hard as he could in the face. It let out a blood churning scream as it fell down to the bottom; the rest of its sad fate was assured.

"Helena! Are you alright?"

"I'll be fine! Leon they took over the vents and the one at the bottom are climbing after us! There is no way we are going to get out of this at the rate were going!"

"Keep climbing and I'll think of something!"

Leon spoke too soon as he could hear a loud metal crunch coming from afar. The cables began to shake uncontrollably and a ringing sound began to radiate throughout his ears. He looked past Helena to see the cables were beginning to break piece by piece. Leon did the math, and he knew if Helena didn't climb at least another few feet they would be going to the bottom of hell with the rest of the infected.

"It's going to fall! The cable is going to break! Helena no matter what happens keep on climbing with all your might!"

Helena nodded as she took one last glance at Leon. She hissed as she gripped at her shoulder momentarily, feeling then nerves in her arm radiate with fire as she tried to bring her focus back to the dangerous task at hand. By now, some of the infected who were in the vents retreated or they tried to jump at Leon and Helena but ended up falling down. The snapping from the cables became more rapid as Helena leapt up past the breaking point alongside Leon. Another few minutes or so, the cables finally wore themselves out and the elevator began to fall and tumble down to the darkness below, carrying the screaming infected as they looked flabbergasted as to what was happening. Helena and Leon gripped the cable tight as they looked down and watched the elevator fall down; they let out a quick sigh of relief as they paused momentarily to reflect.

"Helena, are you okay?"

"Yeah, Leon my arm is getting tired. How much further should we go?"

Leon glanced around the area and took notice that the next floor was only a few feet ahead. As he was planning their next course of action, he could feel a little patter on his face. He looked up ahead and could see the blood trailing down Helena's back and inside he was screaming. He didn't know how far the wound was and though Helena had her vaccinations done for T-826 and some other virus forms there was still a chance she could end up getting severely sick or even losing her limb because of what happened.

"We need to climb up just a little bit more then I need to see your arm. Do you think you can do that for me?"

Helena nodded as she locked her eyes with Leon's.

"I'll try to."

"No, don't try, you better do it."

He said firmly as they slowly inched their way to the next floor.

After another few minutes or so, Leon and Helena managed to make it to the level they needed to be heading at. They sighed a bit as they walked into the hallway with their newly loaded guns ahead as they took their stances and began making the trek through the haunting area. The lights were flickering on and off and the stench of decay and meat began to fester within their nostrils. Leon looked around the corner ahead, and couldn't see anything so he took the moment to head over to a small bathroom accompanied by Helena. He quickly locked the door then checked in all the stalls to make sure there was nothing or no one lurking within them. Leon gently sat down his gear on one of the busted sinks as he took the moment to lift up the clothing on Helena's arm and inspected her.

"Do you feel feverish or anything like that?"

Helena shook her head as Leon took a paper towel and dampened it with water. He then began to press down gently onto her arm while they both watched as the towel seemed to almost slurp up Helena's blood.

"The only thing I feel right now is pain."

"Everything's going to be alright. As long as we get it cleaned up and put pressure onto it you won't be feeling any of the symptoms for a while."

"Leon, am I going to turn into one of those things?"

Leon looked at her right eyes and shook his head as he ripped off a piece of his dress shirt and began to tie it around Helena's arm.

"No, remember the vaccinations we had to get? You won't turn into something so terrible, but you're going to get really sick and I don't know how much time you'll have until it sets in. I never dealt with this before, but I promise you you're going to be alright."

"I trust you."

Leon gave Helena a quick embrace as he took a moment to relax in her arms. He buried his face in the crook of her neck as he tensed up a bit, feeling helpless about Helena's injury. There was more he wish he could have done but with the limited time & supplies they had at their disposal, it wouldn't do much to help. It pained him deep down to see her hurt like this, sure it was one thing before when they were just friends but being a couple made his emotions flare up more so than ever.

"Whoever did this will pay, Lena."

Leon said bitterly as he broke the contact between himself and Helena.

"We should get going then."

Helena said as she gently touched the side of Leon's face before they unlocked the door and headed back out into the field, not knowing what could be popping up at any moment or what lurked behind the corners of the long narrow hallway.


	8. Chapter 8: Surging

**Been getting some hate on my fanfics as of late, but instead of giving up or deleting them I'm going to keep on treking and whip out more. Anyhow, think of this as a bonus chapter folks. Next one won't be out until Friday, so I hope you enjoy it. Please leave feedback if you have any or suggestions. I'm always open minded. Enjoy!**

Leon and Helena made the dangerous trek through the southern hallway past one of the main offices. From afar, they could hear the tiny pitter patter of SURGE's men on the level above them firing off bullets once in a while. They could tell that the team was finally getting close to their location, but with the elevator being out of commission thanks to the attack, the team was going to have to travel by stairway. Once in a while Helena began to cough here and there, the virus was beginning to sink in as she could feel her fingers twitch on the occasion. Leon would glance at her periodically and a stroke of fear engulfed his mind. He knew Helena wouldn't turn into a monster, but based on his previous knowledge from a training course in regards to T-826, the person who has been scratched or bitten in any shape or form from the virus who has been administered the HJ-906754 vaccine could still become intensely sickened and die.

As Leon could remember the words of his instructor ringing through his ears, his feelings were becoming more urgent. He knew they had to get the survivors out of their holding area ASAP and get Helena more sufficient medical attention, but as he was pondering in his thoughts he came down to a simple conclusion: if he had to choose between either the hostages or Helena, he would go for his wife. Usually when it came to picking something so significant, Leon would rather choose to save many lives than to save one person and leave the others to their fate. For him to hold Helena in that high of a regard was a personal sacrifice he was making not only as an agent but as a human being. For so long, Leon put everyone above himself no matter how big or small that person is so for him to even consider leaving many behind just for Helena, it challenged his morale and his loyalty to his mission at hand. Leon had never held anyone, not even Ada to a high degree and some part of him grew scared with each passing step the pair took down the dark corridors of the facility. Deep down he knew for certain that Helena was his Achilles heel, and from time to time he worried about their partnership and how an enemy could use this against him.

The lights continued to flicker on and off as the pair came across some electrical wires that were spewing out from the ceiling. To Helena, it reminded her of the guts being pulled out of the victim they encountered earlier on. She could feel her body grow cold and hot spontaneously as cool beads of sweat trickled down her face. Her nose was even starting to flare up within the inside, and she could tell for certain she was showing signs thus far for a common cold. Helena never anticipated the virus could affect her in such a quick amount of time, and slowly she grew frightened. She took in shallow breaths on the occasion causing Leon to check up on her much to her annoyance. Though she appreciated his concern, Helena's primary focus was on the mission and she hoped that Leon wouldn't be distracted because of what happened to her. She knew she was a fighter, and knew her body would combat the virus the best it could. After slowly making their way safely past the ticking entrails of the electrical supplies from the ceiling, Helena and Leon could see a bright light at the end of the corridor.

They came upon a large indoor environmental enclosure much like the indoor park located in the upper levels of the facility. This was a surprise to Leon as he could remember the times he went to the old one while waiting for Helena to recover from her injuries sustained from the Spokovitch Assignment. He could hear the cool soothing sounds of water glisten its way through the artificial pond that was located near the center of the enclosure, accompanied by a small breeze shifting through the branches of the trees. Leon found it ironic that something so beautiful could remain untouched even during a hell storm such as this mission. This tiny moment of self preservation was quickly killed off like a gust of wind to a flame as they could see at least fifteen of the infected sulking their way around the other side of the park. Leon quickly grabbed Helena's arm and they managed to hide behind a wall, and the pair would slowly peek their heads around the corner to check on their status. It made Helena's stomach feel queasy as she could see a male scratching at his skin and the pieces of flesh fell off like a banana peel. The molting flesh even made a squishing noise that almost made her throw up as it hit the ground. Leon also showed a grimacing look as he took notice of the event, and he quickly pointed his attention to Helena who was trying not to cough.

"Are you going to be alright Lena?"

"Yeah, I will be. Leon try not to worry about me so much right now. We got to think of a way around this."

"I can't help but be concerned for your well being,"

He stated with a pause before Helena took another peek around the outer edge of the wall.

"I know but I'll be fine. Do you have any ideas as to what we should do?"

Leon refocused his attention back to their surroundings. On the other side of the park ground there was the entryway to the main office head quarters. From there the meeting room was another few minutes away from the office area. Leon took notice that a couple of the zombies began to sniff the air, and they let out a gasping sound as they did it. He deduced it must have been himself that they were seeking because Helena was infected and thus they could assume she was one of them. Then again after seeing what happened to the female in the elevator when she fell down to her pack, it didn't matter if she was one of them for they made quick work of her still living body and ate her. Leon could still remember seeing the flesh from her being tenderized within the salivating mouths of the other infected. Leon started to piece together a piece of information from earlier on that both T-826 and T-768 were obtained from their holding compartments. As he took one last look at the male scratching his back rabidly Leon took notice of the small black slits on its eyes. That was no trait of T-826, and was instead a T-768. He shook his head as he began to talk aloud.

"Someone took both strains and mixed them to produce these monsters."

Helena looked up at him with a puzzled expression.

"Leon, what are you talking about?"

"Look at their eyes, see the slits? That is an expression of the T-768 virus along with the killing frenzy we witnessed at the elevator. T-826 B.O.W's are highly dangerous but they don't typically seek out their own kind to feast upon. What we are dealing with is a hybridization of two T-Virus samples."

Helena's eyes went wide as she began to piece together a dangerous riddle.

"Which means—"

She paused as Leon and her both glanced upon her injury she sustained.

"You're safe from T-826 but not from T-768…"

They both looked upon one another with a deep sense of dread, but before any of them could talk back to one another the couple could hear a swooshing sound come from the hallway. Hissing and snarling at them was a charging B.O.W that looked like a green Licker except its claws were over two feet long and black as night, plus it had a weird tube protruding from its back to the neck area which gushed out an acid like substance. Leon and Helena both took off as fast the wind could carry them as the B.O.W rampaged through the corridors and sliced through the metal parts of the walls as it scaled the heavy platted walls. It threw its head back on the occasion and screeched as its calls caught the attention of the zombies lurking around the area. Their sniffing became more prominent as they caught a glimpse of Leon and Helena heading their way. Helena and Leon began to fire as many bullets as they could to clear a path into the doorway leading to the main office HQ. The dead fell fast, making it easy for Leon and Helena to hop over their corpses but they soon had a stampede of them on their tail.

"Quick, back to back!"

Leon shouted as Helena and him met together and began to fire off their weapons at the rampaging B.O.W's. Helena could see spit flying everywhere as the zombies gaped and made smacking sounds with their lips while they charged. Despite having a horde going after them, the pair was making quick work of the creatures until the licker like beast busted through the wall near the entryway and began slicing at the zombies in its path. As much as Leon and Helena were thankful for this beast getting rid of part of the horde, they knew deep down it wanted to hunt the couple down.

Before Leon and Helena were to take off and head for the stairs to the deck area, they took notice of the mutated Licker flicking out its reptilian like tongue to the ground as it tasted a bit of Helena's blood that fell from her shoulder. It rapidly shook its head back and forth in excitement as the tube like structure emerged from its neck to reveal a claw structure at the end. The tube ending opened up to reveal a hole, and a small like tongue structure merged out of it before it lunged its tail like structure out and tried to grab Helena. Instead Leon jumped in the way of her and the claw like protrusions grabbed Leon behind his head as it tossed him into the air. He let out a holler as the Licker used this tube structure to pin him to the ground. Leon managed to use his army knife to cut off a couple of the claws so that he wasn't fully gripped but the structure tried attacking him with its tongue well, almost trying to force it into his mouth. Leon could feel a weird slime like substance ooze from the tongue as it slathered across his face while he struggled with it.

Helena ran down towards the creature and began firing at its cranium. The Licker let out a hissing sneeze as it focused its attention onto her. The structure was still fighting off Leon however as the Licker tried jumping at her with cheetah like speed. Helena managed to dodge it by rolling to her side as the creature hovered above her now and tried slitting her body with its massive blood drenched claws. Helena managed to crawl underneath it and saw an exposed area of its belly, revealing the heart. Before she could make a beeline for it, the Licker smacked her from underneath itself and she flew across the floor and hit a table nearby. The Licker approached her with caution as it made the tentacle appendage stretch out more to accommodate its fight with Leon who was now finally gaining the upper hand as he sliced the tongue off. The Licker hissed in seething pain as it could feel the tongue sleek away into its back near the spinal column, but it didn't give up the fight on Leon. In place of the tongue within the opening, a jagged bone came protruding out like a knife as it tried to stab Leon. He dodged it and began to block its attacks with his own knife as it swiftly tried to pierce him.

While this was occurring, Helena managed to get up causing the Licker to jump up at her. In this moment of quick reflex and pure luck, Helena fell to the floor and slid underneath the beast as her arm found its way into the cavity of its chest. She could feel the insides of the Licker like beast, and could feel the warm and slimy texture of blood and entrails of blood and ooze slather away at her hand as she ripped the heart right out of the being. The Licker bellowed and panted hard as it fell to the ground, now crawling away until it finally collapsed. The tubular structure was squirming rapidly as it let go of Leon and he took the moment to fully slice it off, causing blood to spew and spurt onto his jeans as he got up and panted hard. He turned his attention to Helena as she gently grabbed his shoulder.

"Are you okay Leon?"

He nodded at her, still feeling intense from what happened.

"That was the worst attempt at a French kiss I've ever encountered."

He muttered under his breath as Helena found a small laugh escape her lips accompanied by a hard cough. Helena knelt down to the ground real quick and took notice of some blood coming out of her mouth. Her eyes lit up as she could feel on her finger tips the droplets of blood were coagulating. Leon grabbed her hand and inspected it carefully as his eyes furrowed into a depressive frown as he could see some blood trickle from Helena's full lips. She began to heave a bit as panic began to sink in.

"Helena, hang in there alright? I'm here for you and I'm not going to let you turn."

"Leon but—"

"No buts, I'm not going to watch this happen to you!"

Leon shouted as he grabbed Helena and propped her back up to her feet. His eyes looked upon hers tenderly as Helena could see a small tear escape from the corner of his eye. Before she could say anything to him though, they heard a running noise and saw a man waving his arms in the air. Leon and Helena instinctively pulled their guns up and aimed just in case.

"Thank goodness there is help!"

"Where are the survivors?!"

Helena hollered as the man tried running towards their direction.

"Just go up to the deck area and down the south bound hall! They are in the large meeting room!"

"Why aren't you there with them?"

Leon hollered back as he slowly began to lower the gun down. The man paused for a moment as he panted and kneeled down for a moment to catch his breath.

"I heard gun shots and went looking for help cause I assu—"

Leon and Helena looked onwards horrified as another one of those Lickers came up from the behind the guy and detached its tentacle from the back of its neck and elongated itself. The man looked upwards and noticed the claws as he screamed while it grabbed his face. Leon and Helena began firing at the creature but it dodged most of their hits except for a single shot to its neck. Even so this didn't prevent the unthinkable to happen. Helena's mouth gaped as she saw the long tongue like appendage enter the man's mouth. He made some ungodly gargling noises as it snaked its way down his throat. After a few moments of agonizing pain, the man was tossed aside. He slowly began to get up but then he rapidly began to itch himself and groan while pieces of his flesh began to fall off. The man even choked up a piece of his liver as he fell to the ground and squirmed while his body was shape shifting into something else. Leon grabbed Helena's arm and took off with her as fast as he could, they both knew there was neither hope in saving the man nor enough time to put him out of his misery as they headed up towards the stairs and made a beeline for the meeting room.

During this time Leon and Helena managed to dodge quite a few zombies that tried to chase them but were soon swapped away like gnats from the strange Licker, now accompanied by a second one which Helena assumed was the man from earlier. They began to approach the meeting room and took notice of it being locked. Leon and Helena pounded on it and shouted for someone to let them in as the Licker took its time to assess the couple alongside its counterpart. Leon's eyes widened as they began to slowly make their way towards Helena and himself and he began to pound the metal doors more heavily.

"Someone, please we're here to rescue you! Let us in!"

"Don't be cowards! We're here to protect you!"

Helena screamed alongside Leon as they could hear people chattering and yelling at one another from the back of the door. The Lickers were now a few feet away from them, and after much deliberation from two men behind the door, the couple could hear the door crack and they swiftly took the opportunity to jump through. Once in, Leon, Helena, and the two men who gave them access shut the door as fast as their reaction time could muster. They heard the B.O.W's slam themselves into the door as they let out blood churning screams, disappointed they were not able to capture and obtain their prey. One of the men grabbed a giant table that had been held in place earlier and shoved it to the front as the door automatically locked itself in. One of the Licker's gave a final shove, causing the left hand metal door to dent somewhat as Leon fell back onto the floor with Helena from the impact. The hissing eventually died off and they could hear the creatures move on.

"Leon! Helena!"

The pair breathed in deeply as Claire ran over to their side accompanied by Sherry who helped them up. One of the men who helped barricade the door once more looked at Claire and Sherry with a concerned look crossing his eyes.

"Are you sure we can trust these two? Are they really here to help us?"

"Of course you idiot! This is Leon S Kennedy we're talking about here!"

"You mean the agent who survived Raccoon?"

Another man shouted as the survivors began to talk amongst themselves after collecting their breath from the scare. Helena was getting ready to say something until she collapsed to the ground and began coughing more.

"Helena!"

Leon shouted as he cradled her in his arms while some of the survivors scurried around. Some were panicking, and some were trying to find supplies to help Helena out as she coughed up more blood. Claire covered her mouth as she gasped in shock while taking in what was going on.

"Leon is she—is she infected?"

"She sustained an injury from earlier; she has T-768 coursing through her right now."

Leon said as he took Helena's pulse and propped her up more.

"We should get rid of it before it turns on us!"

A woman said as she grabbed a gun and got ready to take aim at Helena. Leon clutched Helena to his chest as he pointed his magnum out that he kept concealed near his gun harness on his upper shoulder.

"No one is going to be killing anyone, not while I'm here. Put the gun down now."

The woman backed off as did Sherry and Claire who were taken aback by how sinister Leon's voice almost sounded as he glared at anyone who so much as looked at Helena weirdly. When he sensed no one was going to mess around with neither him nor Helena, he looked back down at her and could see she was somewhat passed out as he moved a couple of strands out from her face. He frowned and he could feel his heart pounding out of his chest as he could see Helena grimace.

"Please hang in there Helena…"

"Perhaps I can be of assistance."

Leon looked up after catching that familiar suave voice. He looked up and saw Markus and out of frustration for feeling helpless and worried sick about Helena, he gently put her down and rushed at him. Markus felt his back being pinned to the wall tightly as Leon looked at him with a rage like no other. Claire and Sherry were flipping out as some of the survivors looked on in curiosity and horror as Leon began putting more force into the choke hold he had on him.

"Leon! Put Markus down now!"

He ignored Claire's frantic pleas and looked at Markus right in the eye, almost penetrating his soul with his mere gaze as Markus tried gasping for air.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't tear you limb from limb!"

"K-K-Kennedy—what—are you doing?"

Markus managed to say as he tried grasping Leon's hands in a lame attempt to pry the agent's hands off of his slowly crushing neck.

"You were the one that approved the transfer samples of T-826 and T-68 earlier! You were placed a half hour before the viral outbreak occurred! All of those people who died, and became monsters and now even Helena were infected because of you! I should have known not to trust you because you're part of that wretched group!"

"N-no! L-Listen to me! P-please allow me to—"

Leon's choke hold became as tight as a vice grip as Markus could feel his inner throat swell and gasp. He had never before felt anything painful such as this in his entire life, and as he looked up at Leon's vengeful eyes he felt as if he was going to pass out at any second. Claire out of instinct shoved Leon off of Markus as he let go of the man who was coughing uncontrollably. Claire came to Markus's side and tended to him as Leon breathed hard while keeping his emotions in check.

"Markus was the one who saved Claire and me by leading us and some of the survivors here plus we were with him the entire time before the outbreak occurred. Leon he's not the one you're looking for."

Sherry stated calmly as Leon made brief eye contact with Claire who was giving him a modest glare as Markus picked up his glasses that had fallen off from Leon's impact. He adjusted them before speaking up as he looked at Leon, still seeing the ferocity on his face.

"I-its true I did approve of the transfer of T-826 and T-768 a half hour before the infection broke out of nowhere, but I was going to bring it to the sector 6 section for another test run with a serum I've helped develop."

"Then how come those viruses escaped under your watch?"

Leon said in a deathly cruel voice as Markus frowned.

"Claire and Sherry showed up so I asked for a BSAA agent to retrieve them for me while I was preoccupied. That was the last I saw of the viruses, I swear on my life and everyone's here including your wife's!"

Leon tried to lunge at Markus yet again after he heard the last line roll from his tongue, but was blocked by Sherry. Claire came over to Leon and looked at him firmly, holding her ground to him.

"We can verify it, and Leon just because he was part of The Family doesn't mean he's like them!"

"Claire…"

He had never before heard Claire so angry with him except the few times in their past relationship where they got into fights once in a blue moon. Sherry was overlooking them as she and a couple of the survivors picked up Helena and brought her to a table to try and get her comfortable. Leon looked back behind him seeing Helena still passed out and his eyes grew saddened. Markus then came over and gently patted Claire's shoulder, trying to get her to calm down.

"Claire, he has every right to be suspicious we can't blame him for his instincts."

"Markus…"

Claire faintly said as she felt his hand touched hers while Leon's focus was still on Helena. Markus then let go of Claire and came up to Leon as he gulped a bit trying to get rid of the numbing pain he felt in his neck.

"I can help Helena out. You see before everything went to hell I managed to get some anti-virus from an emergency staff kit just in case. I know it can't cure T-768 but it should keep her stabilized until the BSAA and SURGE team can get to us. They are coming for us right?"

Leon scaled Markus as he began to feel his muscles loosen up a bit from his emotional attack.

"Yeah, they should be here any time now."

"Good. Claire, hon, can you go get some of the medical supplies from the other end of the room and get me the syringes?"

"I'm on it."

Claire swiftly ran over to the other side of the room and grabbed the supplies she and Markus had obtained while they were on the run from the infected alongside the other survivors. Leon followed Markus over to the table where Helena was at as she coughed more. She opened up her eyes and glanced around, feeling disoriented and faint as some people looked down upon her with either horror or sympathy. Leon took a seat on top of the table next to her and gently propped Helena's head up so that she was resting on his lap as Claire handed Markus the syringe filled with the serum. Helena could barely make out the shape of the needle as she could feel a sting as the syringe penetrated her skin.

"She should be alright for about an hour or so."

Markus stated proudly as he backed off once Leon shot him a dirty look. He gently began stroking the side of Helena's face as she drifted back off to sleep while he looked down upon her sadly.

"Hang in there Lena…can someone please tell me how many survivors are left?"

"There is about forty of us. Originally about a hundred until we hit a bad dead end, but then Mr. Sinclair led us to safety."

The tall man from the barricade stated as everyone started to calm down a bit more. Leon could feel his transmission radio go off as he took it out alongside his cell phone.

"Cell phones don't work down here because someone turned off the power grid to them and knocked out all communication. We were even lucky to get a hold of Chris."

Sherry stated as Leon nodded and tuned the radio in.

"Leon are you and Helena alright?"

"Yeah Chris, but Helena's been infected with T-768…we made it to the holding area, the meeting room in the sub level where the survivors are at. About forty of them are alive out of the couple hundred we estimated. How far are you guys from our position?"

"Give us another twenty minutes cause we have a huge horde up ahead!"

The transmission ended but not long before everyone got an ear shot of bullets flying and more of the infected letting out horrid screams. A couple of people gasped while others silently bowed their heads feeling like nothing or no one were going to save them. Helena stirred a bit in her sleep as Leon looked down at her but not before catching the eyes of Claire and Sherry among some other people. He began to feel a huge burden on his shoulders as he tried to pull himself together, knowing full well he had to not only be strong for Helena but for everybody else.

"While we are waiting on Redfield and the SURGE team, can anyone tell me how they think the virus got out and started to infect the faculty?"

He said calmly while he glanced around at everybody.

"Well the guy working the snack cart offered everyone free water then about fifteen minutes later everyone started gasping and turned into those things."

A petite woman explained as she huddled herself together in a chair, trying to find some way to keep her sanity in check. Markus's eyes went wide as he approached her.

"Wait! What did the man look like miss?"

"He had red orange hair, and had a scruffy beard. I-I think his name was Clarkson."

Markus then rushed over to Leon frantically.

"Kennedy that was the guy who was the BSAA agent I asked to look after those viruses!"

"Are you certain?"

Leon asked in a stern tone as Markus nodded his head up and down.

"Did anyone see him or know his whereabouts?"

No one answered but merely shook their heads. Leon closed his eyes real quick as he breathed in a bit before releasing his pent up energy. Helena squirmed a bit and shook as he gripped her arm and looked down on her.

"L-Leon…"

"Just keep on fighting Helena. Chris is almost here and you're going to be alright."

He gripped Helena's hand and tried his best not to become overcome by his emotions. It was really hard though and the clock was ticking fast. While Leon was worried to death about Helena and the survivors lives, there was still a part of him that found Markus fishy and deep down as he made eye contact once more with the man his years of gut instinct told him to still be weary as the wait for Chris and the team dragged on for what seemed like eternity.


	9. Chapter 9: Interogate

**Thanks for all the wonderful reviews and encouragement. Managed to whip this out during a break. As always if you have anything to suggest or what not, I'm all ears. Might be a bit slow updating on Friday cause my gram is in the hospital right now...anyway enjoy.**

Needless to say after another brutally twenty minutes of waiting and almost another hour of picking up evidence, Chris Redfield and the rest of the SURGE and BSAA team managed to make it to Leon and Helena's location. With the threat of the B.O.W's stabilized and more controlled, the survivors were able to get out of the facility with no other casualties. As everyone was being escorted out of the facilities entryway, Leon carried Helena close to him bridal style as he could feel her giving soft weeps of breath on his neck while she slept. He looked down at her a few times as he could smell the metallic flavor of blood emitting from her mouth. Leon's heart sunk like a rock to a body of water as he tried his hardest to contain himself. He wasn't a religious type of man nor did he ever really have a full set of beliefs, but in this moment of scare and terror he felt for Helena's flickering life that was in his arms, he prayed to whatever was out there in the universe to bring her safely back to him. Not as a monster, but as his Helena.

He carried her all the way to the medical tent and was deeply upset when he was later shoved out of it. Leon struggled against a few of the SURGE members who kept on reassuring him Helena was going to be alright, and that he needed to stay back or risk getting infected himself. Leon knew the protocols and followed them to a T but his heart didn't want to see Helena as a threat as he tried one more time to barge through and see his beloved. This time Jake caught him and led him out peacefully as he looked on at the chaos going around them.

As he slowly started to sink inside, Leon shook his head while a familiar friend gently pat his shoulder. He looked up at Hunnigan's eyes with tears as he tried his hardest to keep his composure intact. Hunnigan began to lead him away from the area, but as he walked off with her he turned his head around and could see Helena from the tent with her eyes halfway open reaching out for him. Leon could feel himself glare as he quickly turned away from her eye sight; not wanting the pain of leaving her behind hurt him more.

"It's my fault she got hurt. If I just would have helped her fight off the one instead of focusing on the creature trying to eat my foot none of this would have happened."

Leon said bitterly under his breath as he took a seat near a bench and bowed his head. Hunnigan sighed and gently placed her hands on his shoulders while she lightly shook him.

"Leon you know better than anyone else that when it comes to bioterrorism, it isn't nobody's fault when people get hurt expect for the person responsible for this. I know there is no cure for T-768 but there is trial serums and I'm sure the medical staff is going to do everything they can to keep Helena stabilized. Don't lose hope right now."

Leon looked up at her and in a brief second, Hunnigan could remember Leon giving her that same despairing look when he was in the hospital after the Middle East mission years ago with Helena. She could remember the sorrow his face conveyed when he begged for the staff or anyone to tell him what had become of her. As she snapped out of her brief flash back she quickly gave Leon an embrace and he returned it back with a tight grip as he shut his eyes as hard as he could.

"Leon,"

Leon opened up his eyes and quickly got up from the bench as he made eye contact with Manuela. She was wearing a dress suit and had her hair back in a ponytail. It still stunned Leon to this day to see how much she had changed from being the young woman scared and defenseless in South America to now being the head of the CIA. Even her presence could make a man stop in their place and give her attention as he beauty and pride greatly shown within her cerulean eyes. In a way, her progress to becoming what she is now reminded Leon of Sherry and how much she changed. Hunnigan looked over at Manuela momentarily before deciding to go check up on Claire and the other survivors nearby who were being inspected by BSAA members, leaving Leon alone to himself. Leon glanced up and down at Manuela as she lightly smiled up at him.

"Everyone's changing so fast I've lost count."

He stated in a light toned voice as Manuela nodded with a grin.

"Sorry I couldn't make it to the wedding. I had the South American branch summit to attend in regards to my late father's work. I heard about what happened to Helena. I want to reassure you I'm going to do everything in my power to keep her alive."

"Thank you, Ms. Hidalgo."

Manuela let out a small chuckle and pat Leon on the shoulder as she shook her head.

"Leon, its Manuela. I may be your superior but given the circumstances of the past I don't see the reason why we should have formalities."

"Fair enough I guess."

"Getting back to business,"

Manuela paused as she motioned to Leon to look ahead. He could see that Markus was in cuffs and being dragged off into an escorting vehicle to be taken to the sub-branch unit on the other side of town where interrogations now took place. Some part of him grew sad as Claire tried reaching out for Markus but to no avail as she was blocked. In a way it reminded Leon of how he got thrown out from seeing Helena. As the car drove off with him, Claire stopped and bowed her head as her fists clenched up. Sherry came over to the red heads side and tried to reassure her but Claire snapped at the young blonde but not before storming off towards Leon's direction. Claire ran up to him so quick he didn't even have time to register the stinging sensation caused by her hand raised to his face. Leon looked on in sadness as he could see the fire in Claire's eyes.

"Markus wasn't the one who did it and you know it!"

"Claire—"

"After all he did for you and Helena, you're just going to sit back and watch him get taken? To think I put my faith in you!"

"Claire, that's enough of this nonsense!"

Claire turned her head around and faced the stern look of her brother who was standing but a few feet away. Even at this distance, Chris was intimidating to look upon especially in the eyes. Claire closed her eyes trying to get rid of her brother's cold stare, but out of frustration she groaned and marched off. Leon out of instinct began to walk over towards her, but his journey was cut short by Manuela who pushed her hand in front of his chest.

"She needs her space. I apologize for the trouble Leon; I should have told her we arrested Markus because of his ties to the suspect earlier on when the survivors came out."

Leon gave a puzzled look as his eyes glanced upon Chris.

"So did the team find out officially how this thing spread?"

Chris nodded as he shook his head with disgust.

"We had a local water specialist check out the contents of the food cart that was placed at the scene a half hour before everyone turned, just as you requested earlier on. After retrieving a few samples, we determined that both the T-826 strain and T-768 were mixed together in the bottled water given out to the faculty. Since it was odorless there was no way anyone would have suspected it. Also we verified Jonathan Clarkson's remains at the patient zero sight. He was a young recruit for the BSAA and just transferred here about two months ago."

Leon glared a bit as he clenched his fists with utter disgust and shame. To think someone would weasel their way into the work place like that, go forth and spread something so terrible such as the T-Virus to fellow men made his blood boil.

"What are his ties to Markus?"

Chris rubbed the back of his head as Manuela and Leon awaited an answer. He took in a sigh before responding to the two.

"Jonathan Clarkson is a ruse. His real name is Gregory Sinclair, Markus's half brother. We found this out based on some paper work on his person. It looked like he didn't have time to get rid of it though before we found him, considering the circumstances. I don't think the poor fool anticipated the virus concoction to be so potent. He probably thought the spread would be slow like the regular T-Virus we're use to. On some of the blood stained papers, he even charted an escape route. Everything seemed planned out, but there is something that could save Markus's hide though."

Leon let out a grimacing groan as he glared upon hearing the news.

"What might that be?"

"He was wearing a pretty good disguise. There was no way Markus probably could have told the difference between the Clarkson identify and that of his brother."

"It doesn't matter, they are still family and due to the ties these men share I'm still not convinced Markus is innocent."

Manuela and Chris looked at each other as they could see Leon focusing his watered eyes back to the tent where Helena was present. He let out a gentle sigh as he could feel his palms try to relax after putting pressure into his hands when he made fists earlier on. His eyes rapidly glanced around at the grass below his feet as Manuela began to speak up.

"I was going to send you and Chris to go interrogate Markus, but if you are feeling too emotionally unstable Leon then I can get Jake or someone else to look into it."

Leon quickly turned back to the pair in front of him, and gave them a somber look.

"No, I'll be able to do it. I promise there won't be any more unnecessary drama."

Manuela took in a big breath as she put her hands to her hips and stretched. After taking a moment to collect herself from the stress she had from this scenario, she then handed Leon some files she was carrying in her brief case about Markus. After the trio discussed what was going to happen next with the survivors and the clean up process to be rid of the contaminants plus B.O.W remains, Leon found himself traveling with Chris in one of the SURGE jeeps as they headed over to the other side of town to interview Markus and retrieve his side of the story. It seemed to pass on forever though as the road dragged on, then again to Leon everything seemed to be taking forever as he continued to contemplate about the plot behind all of the mess he and Helena got thrown into. After they drove for about sixteen minutes they finally reached the designated building and unbuckled as they got out of the vehicle.

Chris and Leon both traveled lightly as they approached the hallway of the interrogation rooms. Leon glanced around taken notice how extremely bright the lighting system was, and could even feel his eyes twitch out of irritation. It had been a long time since he had last been here, and Leon couldn't believe how unbearably bright everything was. Chris took notice of Leon's ever growing frustration and clapped his hands two times. Leon was taken aback when he saw the lighting became a bit dimmer as he looked up at Chris amused.

"You guys actually installed a clapper system?"

Chris shrugged a bit as he smirked.

"Hey, everyone got tired of the lights being too bright."

"Whatever works I guess."

The men's few seconds of humor was cut short when they finally made it to the oak wood door and opened up the knob slowly. The room was small and secluded, and within the room was the interrogation wing. Markus was sitting at the end of a petite desk rubbing the back of his hair several times while sighing uncontrollably. Chris and Leon looked at him through the glass, each man being thankful that Markus couldn't see anyone on the other side. One of the BSAA agents who was keeping an eye on Markus gave a brief nod of respect to Chris and he gestured one back. Chris studied Leon who was somewhat glaring at the nervous man behind the glass.

"Are you up for this?"

"Yeah, besides he might be more intimidated by you. I'll get him to talk."

Leon without hesitation opened up the small door and went inside casually. Markus looked up at Leon's eyes with sincerity as he shook his head and bowed. Leon propped up the nearest stool he could find and took a seat as he propped his elbows onto the table, his chin making contact with his hands as he folded them. Leon sighed a bit as he took in Markus's features.

"You're twitching your fingers quite a bit. Are you nervous?"

A brief sigh escaped the man's lips as he tried to dodge Leon's gaze.

"You could say that. I was thrown into hand cuffs and carried off here without hesitation. Any man would be nervous given the circumstances."

Leon closed his eyes momentarily and began to piece together the evidence Chris had laid out for him.

"I'm going to get right to the point. I don't want any bad blood between us for what happened in the meeting room back at HQ. I shouldn't have reacted so cruelly to you, but Markus you must tell me something: did you plan the whole attack?"

Markus's teeth clenched as he hit the desk with his fist.

"Just because I had ties with The Family doesn't mean I am anything like them! They were monsters! So were my own folks who were just benefactors, slaves!"

Leon braced himself as he could feel the anger radiate through Markus's words. He sighed and tried to think of another question that could potentially break the ice and thus counter the hostility.

"Alright, let's say I believe you. Did you have any other family that still does their bidding?"

"Like I told the agents when I was previously arrested, I have two brothers. One, my youngest is my step brother and I've done everything in my power not to get him mixed up with our families business, but within the last three years he's disappeared off somewhere. The second, my eldest brother Gernaro still is a benefactor of The Family or whatever is left of it. But I honestly don't know his whereabouts anymore since I broke off my bond with him a long time ago."

Leon nodded reassuringly as he got up from his seat and paced back and forth in the room, causing Markus to clench up a bit and cower.

"Seems rather convenient, don't you think?"

Markus rubbed his forehead as he adjusted his glasses, taking a moment to take them off as he pulled out a small tissue to clean the lenses.

"You couldn't possibly understand the implications I went through because of my folks and my siblings. I was groomed to be a lap dog for The Family, hell I was even assigned to help out Kent Withrow during his conquest though the idiot didn't deserve it."

Leon stopped in his tracks as he let the last part of Markus's sentence ring in his ear.

"You were jealous?"

"Some would say so. Yes, I guess I somewhat was. I thought I could run things better and maybe even change the government for the better and get Withrow's family out of power but because he showed guts and had exceptional charisma, he easily got to be head of the CIA. I knew though he was just as screwed up as Simmons was."

Leon came over to Markus and looked at him dead in the eyes as the man lightly jumped, taken aback by Leon's ever growing presence.

"That same charisma almost got my wife and I killed two years ago."

Markus gently applied his glasses back on while his hand trembled.

"I know this. I know he had his eyes dead set on destroying the both of you because of Simmons and his fiasco in Tall Oaks and god forbid China. I couldn't say much because it would have been my head at the time, so I told Ms Hidalgo a bit about it, then conveniently when you were arrested and Ms Harper—"

"Kennedy…her last name is Kennedy."

Leon said in a defensive tone. Markus merely nodded.

"Kennedy, right…look I meant it when I said so at the wedding, it is not my intention to hurt anyone."

"You said you didn't know the whereabouts of your younger brother, correct?"

Markus knew Leon wouldn't stand for excuses or petty apologies. He gulped and nodded in respect towards the bitter agent.

"The last I heard of him was about two years ago. He was somewhere in the Philippines and I assumed he was going there for a study since he is an anthropologist."

Leon took in a breath as he traveled to the door and knocked on it, swiftly the BSAA agent who was watching Markus earlier on handed Leon some documents. He quickly took the paper work and shut the door then traveled back to Markus. Leon gracefully took whipped out the photographs taken of Clarkson's corpse and tossed them to face the nerve wracking suspect. Markus picked up the photos one by one and inspected the gory scene before him. He could barely make out what any of this was other than flesh and organs accompanied by huge pools of blood. Leon didn't say anything but slowly allowed the powerful imagery to sneak into Markus's mind.

"What is all of this?"

"These are the remains of that suspect you told us about, the one BSAA agent whom you left in charge to deliver the viruses to you for further research."

"So he's dead,"

Markus threw down the photos with a flat thud and looked up at Leon.

"What's so relevant about these in regards to me, Kennedy?"

"Redfield and some of the other agents investigating the scene of the crime noticed some paper work on this agent. He is your step brother, Gregory."

Markus rapidly glanced at the photos yet again as he brought them close. His mouth lightly gaped as he could finally make out the small onyx ring that was on remnants of what appeared to be a hand. It was a gift he had given to him a long time ago, before Kent took power in the CIA. Markus had a tear stream down his face as the news sunk in and pierced his blood.

"No, no, no…I told him not to. I told him to stay out of this mess…why didn't he listen?"

Markus said while he had his head bowed, the sobbing grew worse as Leon perked up and caught on to the mumbling.

"Sinclair, tell me what mess was your brother getting into?"

"I-I can't say—"

"Cut the crap Markus! If you don't start speaking up and tell me what happened then the agency will have no choice but to put you on trial for this!"

Leon roared as he hit the table with a large thud, making Markus jump back like a scared child as he continued to have small streams of water snake their way down his deep green eyes.

"Alright! About a few months ago I was sent an email from a benefactor associated with my father. Since I am labeled a traitor to The Family for giving names, I was threatened with my very life but they gave me an offer to redeem myself and prove my loyalty. I was to take the virus samples T-826 and T-768 and unleash them into the faculty's water supply—"

"So you did commit the crime but you had your poor brother do it for you instead—"

"No! No! Let me explain myself! I'm in love with Claire, and I couldn't bring myself to do such a terrible thing especially not after seeing what those viruses could do after the China incident. If I didn't do it, I was going to be assassinated at some point, and I received an email just three weeks ago to the date they were coming for me because I over stepped the due date for the viral infection to take place. I was prepared to die, because of my pride and because I didn't want to be a monster in Claire's eyes. Before this all happened, I told my little brother about it while he was in the Philippines, I lied earlier the truth is me and him keep in contact at least once a month when were not busy. He told me and begged of me to let him commit the deed so that way I wouldn't have blood on my hands but I refused to let him be a part of my troubles. I never wanted to see him suffer because of bio-organic weapons…not like how it took away our father and others we loved. As for the emails I've mentioned, check it out if you don't believe me. It's all on my lap top."

By now at this point, Markus went from being a composed man to a giant festering mess of tears and angst. The death of his little brother broke whatever strength he had left inside of him as he lied his face down to the table and used his arms to shield himself. Leon was speechless, and even a little bit of himself was panged with guilt from the aggression he used upon him earlier. He shut his eyes tightly as he tried to get Markus's somber weeps out of his mind. Leon got up and rubbed the back of his head as he headed for the door.

"I'm really sorry for your loss. No one deserves to have their family die."

Markus looked up momentarily as he sniffed a bit.

"Leon, I honestly pray right now you will not go through what I am feeling now."

Leon froze for a moment as he started to think about Helena, also he couldn't help but take notice of some malice hiding in the back of Markus's throat when he said that. Though Markus's confession would definitely check out in his mind, he still couldn't help but feel like he was dealing with a snake disguised as a rat.

"Thanks."

It was the only thing Leon could mutter as he took his thoughts out of the room with himself. Chris watched as Leon came out of the room and started to head out towards the hallway, and he tried asking Leon to come back but he wouldn't even register the SURGE captain's voice. Chris caught up with Leon after a bit and stopped him from continuing to go on.

"Where are you going?"

Chris asked, feeling the exhaustion his body exhumed earlier on during the mission.

"I already received my answers so far. I'm going back to Helena. She needs me."

"Did that last part of the interview strike a nerve?"

Leon somewhat glared and shook his head.

"No, why do you ask?"

Chris glanced up and down at Leon, trying to read his body language. He could tell there was some hostility within him but Chris knew full well it wasn't directed at him. In the back of his mind, if Leon had the chance to, Chris could see him beating up Markus. Hell, even at this point Chris was even considering forbidding the man to come into contact with his sister until he could thoroughly check out Markus's story plus background. He turned his focus back to Leon who was now looking more sad than angry at this point.

"I can take care of the rest of the interview, but Leon I don't think they are going to let you go anywhere near Helena not until they know she can't spread the virus around. You know this as well as I, according to protocol there is to be no contact between someone who is infected until a forty eight hour window has passed."

Leon shook his head and shoved Chris out of the way only to be blocked once more.

"Listen to me; you're not being yourself right now. Leon you're letting your emotions warp your mind. I know Helena is everything to you but you have to put her aside right now and focus on the mission and tasks we have to accomplish."

"Put her aside? How the hell am I supposed to do that while she is infected with a T-Virus sample and could die, especially on my watch!?"

"Leon calm down—"

"Don't you or anyone tell me to calm down. I'm through with this."

Leon once more shoved Chris out of the way as he headed out the entrance of the building. Chris lightly jumped back a little sensing the power behind the door as Leon slammed it upon taking his leave. Chris sighed to himself and shook his head as he put his hands to hips and took in a big breath. He then saw Jill exiting another room nearby and she slowly came up to him, seeing the frustration within Chris's eyes as she gently tapped his shoulder.

"Hey, I head some commotion out here. Is everything alright?"

Chris shook his head.

"No. Leon's gone a bit off the deep end."

"Could you honestly blame him? I heard about what happened. I'd be the same if that happened to be you."

Chris gently took Jill's hand into his own and lightly kissed her skin.

"I'd never let anything like that happen to you."

Jill nodded, but then a thought occurred to her.

"I bet Leon told her the same thing, but you can't always keep your promises with this line of work that we have to deal with. Anything could happen, even things we try so hard to prevent."

Chris gave her words some deep consideration. He could recall all the times before when he told new recruits that he would never let anything bad happen to his men, but every so often two to three new BSAA or SURGE recruits would perish upon their first time in the field. Chris could recall the day he made that speech about sticking together before the China incident when Carla betrayed him, and how he lost Finn and Piers though he promised them both that no harm would come, especially on a first day. He sighed a bit as the memories from that time flooded his head while he slowly let go of Jill's hand. He bowed his head a bit in sorrow, thinking about the countless lives that t died on his watch. Now that he was thinking hard, he realized he had no room to talk when it came to yelling at Leon earlier to get his head back in the game. The agent even came to the realization had this been Jill or even his sister, he still wouldn't have any clue as to how to deal with those inflamed emotions.

"I got to head back to the interrogation room and deal with Sinclair more. Do you think you can check up on my sister for me?"

Jill nodded and smiled.

"Yeah, I can do that. What about Leon though? Do you want me to swing by at the facility and see how he is doing?"

"No, it would probably be best if he was left alone right now. Besides I don't want you or our unborn child near that place right now until things get cleaned up."

For the first time in a while, Jill felt proud of Chris that he was taking a stand and advocating for her safety in regards to their child. She gave Chris a quick pat on the back before leaving to return back to the room she was in as she was checking up on some survivors that were brought to the interrogation facility. Chris collected himself and went back to the room with Markus, hoping that things would get better as he continued to think about Jill, and how much his life would have been devastated if Leon and him were to trade places.


	10. Chapter 10: Secrecy

**Here you go as promised. I'm doing alright but college is kind of kicking me a bit. Hope everyone can enjoy this chapter. I'm still not as satisfied with it as I'd like to be but anyhow please don't forget to review or PM me if you can for any suggestions, feedback etc or just to talk. I'm all ears. Enjoy!**

Darkness, nothing but pitch black covered Helena's mind as her consciousness began to stir. Once in a while she could hear the rapid movement of voices dancing behind her ears. Her body couldn't move, and every now and again she would get sudden bursts of a random color in her sight. Most of the time it was a shade of red, but after a few split seconds it would fade to black. Helena felt as if she was stuck in some sort of weird limbo where she could feel two conflicting forces battling it out within her body. She didn't know how long she had been like this, but it seemed as if days or even weeks at a time flew as the cycle of color and black continued its course.

There was something peculiar though that caught her attention in the corners of her mind as she slept. Every so often she would feel a sudden urge that felt primal accompanied by a tantalizing resistance of a basic drive that drove her almost mad as she could feel the sensation for food. Helena had felt the pain of starvation before, but never like this. It was as almost if she had never eaten anything in her life, and her body needed something, _anything_ to bring it back to focus. With each passing second she could feel it grow more, and when she mustered enough strength she could feel her arms instinctively reaching out to grab something. Her mind didn't care what it was so long as it was edible.

She struggled against her mind as it battled her for control when she started to pick up something new in this dark environment, smell. Everything seemed to be heightened by a tenfold. She could even detect the bitterness of the sweat emitting from the people close by, and her tongue began to salivate. Her stomach felt like an empty gas tank as she squirmed more still trying to reach for an object, until she felt something. She couldn't see or make it out but the material was soft, almost like that of a warm blanket coming out of a dryer yet it had a pulse. With each throb of the veins she could feel within the person's arms she had, the urge to bite and enjoy the succulence of the texture in her mouth grew. Helena tried objecting to this, but slowly she could feel her body combat her as her mouth opened wide and tried to bite at the skin she had.

Before she could even get a taste or feel the pulsing aliveness of blood hit her mouth she could feel more people around her and the presence of all the individuals she sensed was overwhelming. Helena could feel her body squirm as she tried to desperately make a sound while she felt a massive weight hit her hard in the chest. If she could have gasped in this moment, she would have taken the opportunity. Helena could feel her own blood stream cease up and her heart race rapidly until a blow to her neck was felt. She could have sworn in this moment of clarity that someone had hit her with a grenade for the impact was severe. As she could feel the urges to feed die, and her mind start to calm, Helena was thankful it was over. Darkness over took her once more.

Hours seemed to pass ever so slowly as Helena began to drift once more in her mind. She felt another drive, but this time it wasn't hunger. Faint pulses like that of a fluttering heart radiated through her body, almost as if she was feeling a butterfly trying to get out of her stomach. Instead of pitch black being within her eye sight, once in a while as the fluttering became more prominent, she would catch a glimpse of light. Sometimes if she focused on the feeling long enough, color would appear. Helena tried with all her might to concentrate as she could hear the hunger rising up again. She had to fight it; she had to battle with everything she was. Though during this entrapment she wasn't aware of anything around her, she could still remember getting the long scratch on her shoulder and feeling T-768 begin the long trek of converting her into one of the undead. The pulses began to exaggerate more, almost in a dance of beats as Helena could finally feel her muscles move and her body adjust. In an instance as she could feel the little beat ring through her ear, Helena woke up.

She immediately out of instinct tried to shield her eyes away from the bright light near the hospital bed as her eyes adjusted. Being in the dark for what seemed like forever, she needed a moment to feel the world once more. As her eyes readjusted to focus back on the real world she took notice that the hospital wing was open once again, and then a rapid flood of memories came to her almost like a dam bursting. Helena could recall Leon carrying her out of the facility as survivors ran past them, and she could remember being pulled away from him as he desperately tried to reach out for her. Her final memory came back to her for it was the most haunting, she could remember feeling her body shut down as she reached her hand out, almost in a similar fashion as Deborah had done back in Tall Oaks before she was enveloped in that sac like cocoon, and tried to get Leon to come back to her as he looked on in sadness.

Helena sighed as her thoughts were cut off when she saw Sasha Carlisle enter the room to greet her. She never would have thought in this moment she'd be so happy to see a doctor in this time. Sasha came over to her and propped up the hospital bed as Helena could see the IV's lodged into her wound. She made a grimacing look as she could see a weird green fluid being administered into her body, while an almost black red substance was being pumped out.

"What is all this?"

Helena said faintly as her eye gazed upon the fluids moving clock wise and counter clock wise. Sasha switched one of the IVs around as she began to explain.

"Well, one bag is filled with GK-65543 a new serum to combat T-768. This hasn't ever been fully tested before until now. The second bag with the red is your blood that has coagulated within your system thanks to the virus, basically your infected blood. It's going to circulate into the serum, and as it gets detoxified its being transported back into your body. Don't worry though, the green color will fade the moment the newly cleansed blood seeps back into your system and you'll be good as new."

Helena paused for a moment and let out a faint gasp as she heard the news.

"Wait, so I have been infected? Shouldn't you be not near me? What happened while I was out? How do you know this serum is going to work—"

Sasha gently raised her hand up to silence Helena, who was beginning to grow more panicked as indicated by the machine that was keeping close tabs on her heart.

"Helena, you should try to be calm while this is going on. But yes you have been infected but the good news is you're taking the serum rather well. The scientists who came up with it said you're doing just fine and its even reversing the effects from earlier on."

Helena let out a troubling groan as she rubbed the back of her head gently.

"Earlier on? What happened while I was out?"

Sasha cleared her throat as she could feel herself tense upon reliving the events from earlier. She could recall Helena's skin tone turning a modest grey and how her eyes looked blood shot. Even her flesh felt sagged in places. Sasha lightly gripped her arm that was covered up by her long sleeved shirt, hiding the bruises she sustained from Helena when she tried to bite her. The painful memory of encountering someone she considered a friend slowly forming into a monster was fresh .She couldn't keep Helena waiting long though as she got ready to answer her question.

"We—almost lost you Helena. You almost turned completely. Had the doctors been late delivering the trial sample from Canada, you wouldn't be here right now."

Helena's mind traveled to a million places as she felt the news hit her like a bullet to the heart. She had a few close calls in the past but as her mind flooded with images and feelings that she had kept to herself in the dark, she was scared.

"I didn't hurt anyone did I?"

Sasha shook her head slowly; a sudden relief hit Helena upon hearing the grateful news.

"No one was hurt. Leon came by as often as he could. I and the staff were forbidden to let him in because of the forty eight hour containment period. Also the docs who administered the serum asked for additional days because we didn't know for sure if you might revert back."

"Do you think it's possible the serum will fail?"

"Nope, it's been about a week now since you've been infected. They were pretty positive based on your test results that you're going to be alright."

Had it really been a week? Had the whole incident at the facility really happened? Was everything just a dream? Helena's mind felt clouded while she took in the thoughts dancing through her. She wondered how everyone was doing now in that short amount of time she had been out. Most of all though, she pondered in her memories about Leon. She closed her sleepy eyes soundly, remembering their time together before this whole fiasco occurred. Helena let out a sigh and looked around the room steadily.

"Do you know anything about the investigation as to what occurred?"

Sasha hummed to herself as she propped a chair over and took a seat, taking a moment to adjust herself as her legs crossed.

"From what us faculty knows a BSAA agent was the one snuck the viruses into some sort of water supply and delivered it to the staff in the lower sectors. Evidently the man is connected to a bioterrorist, some really rich and powerful one. I'm not even sure though if this information is correct, I'm just a doctor. Most of this stuff the higher ups don't even bother to tell us though we work in the same building as agents like you and Leon. I'm sure Hunnigan or even Valentine will fill you in if Leon isn't back yet."

"Where has he been?"

"Oh, well he's been working with Chris and that Markus character on tracking down where the original mastermind behind the attack is. Leon let it slip to me the other day that they might be close to a suspect. I got to tell you he's really dedicated to you. Even through the plaid glass he didn't leave your sight until he got kicked out. He's also called me often to ask how you've been. I'm sure he's going to be really happy to hear you're awake and sound."

Helena smiled as she looked upon Sasha's eyes, but then a thought occurred. How come was Leon working with Markus? Had he been a suspect? Only a week had passed but to Helena she felt so out of the loop with information it was as if she was a clueless child trying to piece together the complicated needs of the adult world. She began to prop herself up more as her muscles began to receive feeling once again. She wiggled her toes trying to get blood circulated through them due to her legs being asleep. Sasha took notice and got up to help Helena stretch her legs out, she even lifted one up and held it in a straight position for a time until it was alright for her to place them down. In a way this reminded Helena of the times where Leon would perform something similar, back when her legs were broken and some even feared she'd never walk again. To this day she still didn't know how to repay him. Though being married was a start, Helena wish she could have given him more for all the times he'd have to drag her out of a sand pit. She missed him tenderly during this time, and a huge part of her hoped that by some miracle they would be able to resume their honeymoon before heading back into hell again.

After Sasha helped with Helena's legs and provided her with some vitamins, Helena began to remember the little fluttering sounds she heard while trying to revive. It was soft and gentle, like that of a newly hatched butterfly emergency from a cocoon. She would never forget the warmth and comforting feeling from that and some part of her missed it already. Helena then remembered the butterfly clip Ada had given to her and in some part of her subconscious, Helena, though not spiritual to a T, supposed maybe it was some type of good luck. As she made that analogy to her experience, she began to feel remorseful for what was said to Ada on that night of the mock wedding. She knew what Ada had gone through shortly after Leon and herself had decided to make the relationship work. Helena could even recall when Leon came to give her the news about Ada's well being; she was the first to jump on the band wagon and urged Leon to go comfort her. It was the least anyone could do given the crisis she was facing, but even as Helena felt a pain of guilt she still swallowed the contempt she had for that woman after trying to grab Leon away. Ada had her chance, one would say too many, and Helena had enough.

As she took in a sigh though, she considered possibly keeping the gift after all. She felt foolish for even thinking of it, but it was something that could remind her of the heart beat like sound that broke her out of the dark. A symbolic representation of her hope during that time of confrontation and trying to win back her body could be useful to her. Also, she recalled the night of her fight with Leon and how he did proclaim she'd look beautiful with it so logically, why not accept the gift for what it was? Even if that gift happened to be from someone she no longer trusted in regards to her relationship.

Her mind was lost in the clouds as she didn't realize Sasha had been gone for a while, but then came back in the room with some fresh fruit and vegetables. As Helena picked up the fork provided and tasted the bitter sweet flavor of carrots in her mouth, she never would have thought she'd be so happy to have her least favorite vegetable again. Sasha looked on at her happily, but then she realized there was something important she had to tell Helena, something the scientists and heads of the medical team had forbid her to say until such a right time could occur, but given the circumstances Helena had been through and what was to come, Sasha deduced there would never be a right moment for the news she bared. Given the complications, she feared for the agent's safety and what could become of her if things went off the deep end. As Helena finished off her vegetables faster than that of a horse grazing upon fresh grass, Sasha came over and lightly taped her hand, gaining her full attention.

"Sasha, is something the matter?"

Sasha could feel herself swallow her own spit as she worked up the courage.

"Helena…there is something you need to know about that serum and you. I'm not supposed to say anything but it needs to come out."

Helena could feel her blood almost freeze as Sasha looked upon her sadly.

"There is some negative consequence about that serum, isn't there?"

Sasha nodded as she took Helena's hand into her own, holding onto her fragile skin for comfort.

"Yes, and you're in great danger…"

Markus traveled back over from the meeting room where the coffee was being brewed and swiftly returned to the investigation wing carrying two warm cups. As he came upon Leon and Chris plus Claire who was rummaging through old records and case files, he sat the containment's down and sighed a bit upon taking a seat next to Claire once more. She looked up at him sadly, seeing the bags under his eyes for the last several nights the four of them searched and scoured every record and every personal document concerning The Family. Chris glanced back at his sister every so often, weary of her being around Markus and feeling the need to throw the man out but he held back his emotions as he focused on the task at hand. Leon couldn't help but look over on the occasion as well as he could see Claire and him whispering to each other a bit. Leon cleared his throat and began to speak up.

"If you two are feeling tired from the research, then go home and rest up."

Markus and Claire looked up at him, startled by his words.

"Are you sure Leon?"

Claire beckoned as she sipped her cup, taking in the aroma of the sweet texture of the coffee.

"Is there anything more I can do?"

Markus stated shortly after. Leon shook his head with a no and motioned for the door.

"I think Chris and I can handle the research for now. If you both find out something, be sure to let the two of us know and report to Hidalgo as soon as possible."

The pairing nodded and exited the room arm in arm as Markus took a real quick peek behind him, seeing Chris and Leon working diligently. He sadly looked back to Claire as the two began to exit down the hallway, leaving Leon to contemplate about the evidence they had. After Markus was acquitted of charges minus a penalty from rank because he never told anyone about his assassination attempt, he offered to give up some of his family members on a silver platter to SURGE/BSAA. During the time Helena was out all Leon would do was stay up late and go through documents about certain individuals that ran the main frame of The Family's structure of power. It was a tedious task and once one loop hole was solved, another would form. Leon was very thankful Claire had forgiven him about Markus and decided to offer help deciphering some of the information they found because it was complicated to say the least.

It was hard tracking down the original sender of the emails that were provided to Markus a few months before hand when he was ordered to perform the terrorist attack on the facility. After much deliberation Chris found out it came from a computer located near Bora Bora. When the news arrived to Leon, it was somewhat of a shock. He never would have suspected a faraway place being the homeland of bioterrorists. Also a sad thought came to his mind once he would have to bare this news to Hunnigan. She had always dreamt of taking a vacation there, and now at this point she'd probably toss it into the nearest garbage pail in her mind knowing there were terrorists running amok there. Leon had been to Bora Bora only a couple of times and never once had any inkling there was something sinister occurring on the island. He sadly shook his head and sighed as he could feel his eyes droop from exhaustion. Chris sat down some more documents he retrieved from the printer nearby and looked over at his friend sadly.

"Speaking of going home and getting rest, you should do the same thing."

Leon yawned as he stretched his arms, feeling sleep wanting to take over.

"There is still more work to do."

Chris rolled his eyes and smirked as he sat down with the papers.

"Look we already got done with the paper work the higher ups wanted about the attack, took care of Markus's testimony, managed to track down the original email to Bora Bora and I'm sure given another few days we'll find out who plotted to kill Markus and planned the terrorist attack here then we'll go on in and bust the guy. Besides you haven't been home within the last week. I'm sure there is something you'd like to take care of back home."

Leon propped his elbows onto the table before him as the palms of his hands met his face as he began to rub his eyes momentarily. All of a sudden a sad feeling of weight overcame him when Chris mentioned home.

"There is no home for me when Helena isn't there."

Chris rubbed the back of his head sadly as he could see the pain in Leon's eyes. He took notice how on edge he had been and how instead of drowning himself into alcohol, Leon was flooding with work and research. He basically went from alcoholic to workaholic within a short amount of time and it began to scare Chris a little bit as he grew more worried for the troubled agent.

"Maybe you should go visit her and see how she's faring."

"They still won't let me near her and it's been past the forty eight hour window."

"Well, at the very least go take a break before you kill over. I already spent the last several days picking up corpses and flesh around here, I'd hate to see you end up being another thing to take care of."

Leon shook his head and chuckled slightly as he focused his attention to Chris. He leaned up against the chair he was sitting in before responding.

"I didn't think you cared so much."

Chris smirked and went back to work looking at some papers.

"I don't but I know your wife would kill me if I had let anything bad happen to you."

"Knowing her, I could see it happening. Alright, I'm going to take up your offer. I'll be back probably in a couple of hours after I go check up on Helena."

Chris nodded in sincere agreement then waved as Leon got up and exited the room. He puffed a bit as he tucked his hands into the pockets of his blue jeans and walked away. Despite wanting to keep on continuing the research Chris and him had been taking care of, it felt good to get out of that secluded area and just breathe. Leon himself even began to worry he was focusing on capturing the mastermind behind all of this mess too much. In fact had this been another person in his shoes, he'd admit to having an obsession with this case. In all his years of working for the government he had never been so hell bent on anything like this before and in terms of how bad the scenario was, it was miniscule at best to Tall Oaks and China yet he was able to get over those two events as if nothing happened. Sure, it took a lot of time but after two years since then it had become a lot easier to live with. Helena came back to his mind and he knew as clear as day she was the reason behind the drive.

When Leon got any little sleep he'd dream of Helena and being together again. He even had dreams where they didn't kiss nor touch in that way, but that he merely got to hold her hand. That was all the comfort he needed in having her back with him. He could recall lying in bed the following night of the attack and feeling so lonesome without her being next to him. Leon had gone years without sharing that private space with anyone in his bed before with no issues, but the two years he had already shared with Helena hit him hard whenever he'd look over to her side and see that nothing was there. Even the little crevices made in the bed from her body were beginning to disappear slowly along with her scent within the pillow cases. He could remember clutching her pillow close to him hoping some small trace of her would be by his side. Eventually, knowing full well nothing was the same anymore he left the apartment and had since been spending the night in the few spare rooms at the government facility near the housing area. It wasn't home, nor did it provide any comforting sense but it allowed him to clear his mind when it came to his wife.

Leon arrived in the check out area of the hospital wing sector and began logging in to the guest computer. While some of the secretaries were either sleeping or taking a break, a touch screen computer would show up in front of the doors granting access into the wing. Leon registered his ID and finger prints into the system and the doors slowly began to click and clatter while they opened up. He walked past a few rooms and once in a while took notice of the poor souls in each one. Most of them happened to be wounded from missions or were sick badly. He could feel his throat freeze a bit as he inched closer to Helena's room, and found Sasha exiting the door. She gave Leon a light smile as he approached her wanting to hear any news or progress.

"How is she?"

Sasha found herself smiling up at Leon as she shut the door.

"She's been making excellent progress. She was awake earlier and wanted to see you. I tried to get a hold of you but your phone wasn't picking up."

Leon's eyes widened slightly as he reached into his pocket and picked up his cell phone. There were three missed calls, each one coming from Sasha. He then realized he must have put the device on silent while he was concentrating on the case. Leon briefly sighed while his eyes closed as he felt guilty for not picking up sooner.

"Can I see her?"

"She's resting up right now. Had a big day you know? Plus I'd be breaking policy…"

"Please Sasha."

His tone was saddening to say the least and almost to the point of begging. Sasha knew she couldn't keep up her composure with the way Leon yearned to see Helena. She rolled her eyes and smiled as she gave him the card key to the room, knowing full well she was breaking protocol.

"I'm going to go get myself some coffee. I never saw you come in and I just so happened to leave my card key behind. I know nothing of this. Make it count."

She gave Leon a brief wink before marching off. Leon watched as Sasha left as he gave a smirk before sliding the card. A few beeps went off and the door opened. Leon took a gentle stride into the room as he came over to the bed and sat down near Helena's side. He took a moment to watch her sleep and take notice of her body gently capturing air and releasing. He could hear the heart monitor go off little by little feeling happy she was calm. Leon gently leaned over her and kissed Helena on the forehead. She mumbled a bit in her sleep as her arms stretched. Helena then took in a big breath through her nose, and could feel a familiar scent come to her mind. She woke up upon feeling Leon's presence in the room and was amazed to see him sitting right by her.

"Hey hon—"

Before he could usher another sound, Helena leaned up and wrapped her arms around him. Leon let out a small grunt feeling the force of her hug hit his gut a bit as he instinctively pulled her to his chest. Her chin rested on his right shoulder and his fingers messed around with her hair a bit as he gave her another brief kiss upon the head. He closed his eyes taking the moment to enjoy every second he had with her.

"I'm happy to see you again."

Helena said warmly as she could feel a small tear escape from her face. Leon's grip on her became a bit tighter as he could feel his emotions fly.

"You had me worried sick. Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, I'll manage. How is everything going?"

"I should be the one asking you that since you're the one in the hospital."

A light smirk crossed Helena's face as they gently pulled apart from one another. Helena stroked some of Leon's bangs from his eyes so she could capture his face fully.

"Leon you look so tired."

He gently grabbed Helena's left hand which was messing with his hair and kissed it.

"Don't worry about it. I'll be able to sleep better now that I know you're going to be okay."

Helena wanted to take a moment and say he sounded corny, but then she thought back to what Sasha had explained earlier on. The news the doctor bared for her was dreadful in fact, scary. Helena knew she had to tell Leon about the virus and the serum but in this moment after not seeing him for a long time, she didn't want to break up this one little glimpse of happiness she was sharing with him. She figured she would break the news during a more suitable time.

"How long can you stay?"

They found their hands meeting each others as they stared into one another.

"Not long. I shouldn't be here but I needed to see you. Listen, I'm going to be leaving so that way Sasha doesn't get into trouble for letting me in. I'll fill you up on what's been going on tomorrow when Chris and I get done with our research project to find out the person responsible for all this chaos."

Helena cocked an eye brow as she could remember the computer from earlier on during the mission and the sign off document from Markus.

"Wait, what about Sinclair?"

Leon shook his head.

"He wasn't the one who planned this thing out. He's been cleared of charges minus getting demoted for not warning everyone about this reward for his head per requested by The Family."

"Seems like they aren't going to give up…"

Helena said sadly as she bowed her head for a moment, feeling like she failed in so many ways. She turned her eyes back to the blankets as she could see Leon's hand gripping her own tenderly. He knew full well Helena had been tired of running from these creeps and grew exhausted from fear. If he had it in his power he'd keep Helena away from all of this, even if it cost both their jobs.

"They won't but rest assured we won't either."

Helena looked into his eyes and could see the wonder lying behind them. Then she took notice of how watery they were becoming as he tensed up his facial muscles, holding back.

"Leon?"

"I'm sorry. I thought I might have lost you again."

During this moment as he lowered his eyes to the bed he could remember when Helena had faked her death in order for The Family not to follow her or try to kill her after she had killed off Kent. Even though the whole thing was planned out, Leon still had some bitter feelings towards the scenario. Though fake the pain of losing Helena forever was an everlasting fear he had kept inside his heart. Even now as he glanced over at the IVs and upon seeing the serum for the virus attack on gentle body, he still grew scared.

"You'll never lose me. I can't be rid of that easy. I'm Ms Onslaught after all."

Leon chuckled slightly as did Helena before they embraced one more time before kissing one another. This was something Leon had been craving for a long time as he enjoyed every second of the touch between their lips.

"I hope you can get well soon. It's not the same without you around."

Leon said in between the contact as they stopped and their foreheads met together as they briefly nuzzled each other.

"I'm going to be alright. I better let you go, but you must promise me you'll pick up the phone next time Sasha comes calling."

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that."

"Never mind about it. Go get some sleep; you look like someone took you out of a gutter."

Leon laughed a bit as they kissed once more.

"I'm going to visit you first thing when all this crap is taken care of."

Leon gave Helena a tender peck on the cheek as he got up and headed for the door.

"Leon,"

He turned around to face Helena briefly as he smiled happily at her.

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

He smiled warmly and traveled back to her again and gave her another kiss and stroked the sides of her face. Despite how tired his body felt he was overcome with joy having her again and not fearing for her life.

"I love you back."

It was the final words exchanged between the two as Leon exited out of the room and waved bye to her before departing. Helena watched as he slowly disappeared into the distance and had already begun to miss him. She leaned back into the bed and shook her head slowly; thinking back to what Sasha had told her:

_"How long do you think I'll have left?"_

_Sasha shrugged sadly as she looked at Helena with concern._

_"Who knows..maybe months at most. It's hard to say."_

_Helena could feel her heart race upon hearing the news emerge from Sasha's mouth. She wanted to cry, she wanted to scream, and she wanted to get up and rip out those damn IVs and say to hell with everything. She knew though that she couldn't and with every passing second her body began to tense up more with dread._

_"Would you prefer if I told Leon what's going on?"_

_Helena shook her head. As much as the news shattered her and made her feel worried she couldn't let Sasha bare this. She had already played her part in telling Helena._

_"No, this is my burden…I just hope that I have enough time to set things right."_

_Sasha nodded somberly._

_"You will…just make it count."_

Helena opened up her eyes upon returning to the present after having a brief flash back. She wiped the sweat from her face and tried to relax her body all over again. It was going to be a long night as her mind danced with the many scenarios of her telling Leon about the danger she was facing.


	11. Chapter 11: Backstab

**I'm not gonna lie, I am very amused right now that everyone is thinking I'm going to kill off Helena..it may happen. Can't say for sure but it makes me proud to know you all care about her. **

**Here ya go guys, hope this isn't confusing X_X had a hard time keeping it straight forward. Thanks for the wonderful reviews and PM's! I enjoyed every single one! Let me know if I didn't get to you yet because for some reason I had responded to people and they haven't yet recieved my end of the conversation. Enjoy everyone! Next chapter won't be out until Friday.**

Leon was able to get a good ten hours of much needed sleep knowing Helena was safe and sound. At about twelve at noon he slowly got up and stretched his arms and legs. He felt more rested and ready to continue the research project with Chris. As he got out of bed he began to pick up the blankets that were lying on the floor and folded them up so that the next agent who needed the resting area wouldn't come home to a mess. He really didn't like the dorms at the government HQ housing quarters because of some many bad experiences such as having to roommate with people before, a big reason as to why Leon never had let anyone live with him in his own apartment until Helena showed up in his life. After he got dressed into some nicer clothes he had retrieved from the foot of the bed, he heard a rushing noise of footsteps. The door swung open and Chris came in, panting hard as he clutched some papers to himself.

"Whoa, Chris are you alright?"

"You got to head over to Hunnigan's office with me. Markus managed to debug some of the documents we found on Kent Withrow and his side of the family. I think we finally have the guy we are looking for."

Leon's eyes went wide as he didn't hesitate to take off down the hallway with Chris. He was so pumped from hearing the information that he even forgot to put on some shoes or socks. After catching the newly installed elevator a few times and running down a flight of stairs they made it to Hunnigan's office where Claire and Markus remained.

"Good morning Le—oh."

Hunnigan stated as she took notice of his unkempt hair and the fact he was barefoot in her office. Claire let out some muffled giggles as Markus and Chris took notice. Leon's face lightly flushed a little as he brushed it off.

"Lover boy is psyched because his wife is up and at it."

Claire stated as Leon nudged her a bit as she came over to pat him on the back.

"Anyway, Chris told me you guys managed to find out who was behind all of this."

Hunnigan nodded and motioned for Markus to speak. He turned off the lights using a remote and went onto Hunnigan's lap top and began to work the overhead projector. The gang watched as the screen flickered a few times and files began to pop up on the screen. Hunnigan then came over with a laser pointer and began to show everyone the information they had been waiting for the last week.

"Well thanks to SURGE and Redfield we got the IP address of the laptop that originally sent that assassination letter to Markus. We all know for a fact it was traced to Bora Bora. As for its official location there that remains a mystery but we dug through some old records of Kent's last night as a last ditch effort to trace anyone close to the original sender. Turns out Kent had a sister who took on the last name Crane after she married a man named Wesley. The only people who had knowledge of Kent having a sister was the Family themselves, the government didn't have a clue until we had Markus here hack some of the documents we had difficulty with in the past because we didn't know any of the hacker data Kent had on his original computer."

"So what does this have to do with the email that was sent to Markus?"

Hunnigan focused her eyes to the black haired man who nodded and cleared his throat shortly after adjusting his tie. Leon crossed his arms and began to listen in more intently.

"Wesley Crane happens to be my godfather and a huge benefactor to the Family's ways. I know he doesn't think very highly of me since I went rogue on the Family. Also get this; he owns a huge amount of property on Bora Bora. According to the records in Kent's personal logs, Crane has owned part of the land for the last fifteen years using it as a personal getaway where he can take some high and mighty citizens from the US there to lavish parties and also as a cultivation ground for B.O.W's."

Leon shook his head as he began to process the information given to him.

"How do we know the Bora Bora gig isn't circumstantial? For all we know several members of the Family could own land there."

Markus nodded and adjusted his glasses before he began to speak up.

"Ah, see that is the thing. Based on my knowledge of the Family's background and the documents provided he is the only one who has substantial land there. I also recall way back when during my time with my father he mentioned something about Crane trying to purchase a huge chunk of land near the tropics for what he called a "biological preserve". Sounds fishy to me if I do say so myself. It all makes sense now, and he has good reason for killing me since he is still one of the only few Family members still left lurking around who would be mighty mad about Kent's death. The rest have either been arrested or they are in the shadows."

"Well, if everything you're all telling me is true then can we go in a bust the guy?"

Markus rubbed the back of his head nervously and everyone lightly tensed up a bit at Leon's question. He glanced around at them all with a troubled look of concern. Hunnigan motioned for Markus to change the slides to something else and a picture of Wesley appeared along with some other interesting information. She then began to speak up once more, this time sounding more serious than ever.

"We have a few problems with trying to bust him. One, he is a multi-billionaire and a head member of a society club plus Crane Enterprises, his research company on secondary means of energy. Two; he's got major connections to all pharmaceutical and educational based projects in the United States. If we just go in there with our guns held high he'll be getting a slap on the wrist before you can say find the dirt bag. This might also give him an incentive to counter attack and perhaps cause more damage. He's all wired up with people who adore him and lavish him, including our own president we have currently and he's got people willing to put their life on the line for him and erase anything that ties him to bioterrorism. Also he's got a high streak of good deeds resting upon his shoulders like helping the school systems get more funds for extracurricular activities and being a driving force in making college affordable for low income families. If you look at him from afar he's a well educated individual who is willing to help those who wish to seek greatness. As you can see, the situation is difficult."

Leon groaned a bit as he found himself sitting in a chair nearby Hunnigan's desk. He wiped his eyes a bit as he adjusted himself trying to think of the best course of action.

"It seems like we can't get near the guy. If we go in as government agents he'll blow the whistle quickly and know something is up. How on earth are we supposed to get close to that guy without him sending the dogs loose on us?"

Claire smiled sweetly and folded her arms behind her back as she quickly waved her hand up in the air, gaining everybody's attention.

"See I gave this a lot of thought before these guys did here, and I suggested undercover work."

Leon cocked an eyebrow as he looked at Claire with a baffled expression.

"Come again?"

"Well, from what Claire is saying the best way to get to Crane is to talk the talk and walk the walk. If you can convince the man you are a gentleman of status and power he may let you into his inner circle. Once you're a part of the club you could probably get the secrets he has been keeping and also get access to his hot spot in Bora Bora. Apparently he only lets a handful of rich and powerful people in the US over there, no exceptions."

Chris stated as Hunnigan nodded.

"What's the status of the people whom he is affiliated with who are granted access?"

Leon asked hesitantly as he began to think of himself trying to act rich and proper. Sure, he was all about manners and such but never to those extremes. Living the high life was never something he was quite curious of in life before. Hunnigan cleared her throat after taking a sip of water from a cup nearby her desk and gently sat it down before continuing.

"Mostly they are people who are millionaires or own large sums of property themselves. Realtors, bankers you name it he's got it. Also get this, he's got at least three of Kent's original clientele he'd give good B.O.W discounts to on the black market."

"If that is the case and he is connected to some of Kent's men, then how am I supposed to know if he is aware of me and Helena?"

"I had Jake and Sherry back in Europe look into it because we all needed some rest. As far as what he knows Helena is still dead because of what happened between her and Kent two years ago, plus as for you no records have indicated you were part of anything. Kent wasn't able to put you on the record either because of his untimely death. Neither he nor the clientele know about you and as for Helena she is as good as gone plus they have never seen her face except for Simmons side and they have all been arrested or put to death trying to escape trial."

Leon nodded to himself as Chris stepped outside to take a call from Jill. Markus Claire got up to leave out of the room shortly afterwards once they got the boot from Hunnigan due to her powerful nod. They quietly left but not before Claire rested a hand on Leon's shoulder and quickly mumbled she was going to go visit Helena. Leon watched as they hastily exited out of the room, leaving just Ingrid and Leon together. Hunnigan propped her elbows onto her desk after turning off the lap top and flipping the light switches back on using the remote nearby. She rested her chin on her hands and looked at Leon dead in the eye as he glanced at her remotely.

"I heard she's up and running again."

Leon nodded in a somewhat happy mood.

"Yeah, I got to see her last night for a bit."

"That's good to know. Anyway since I was already aware of this whole upper class gig you two got to pull off I've already taken the liberty to tell Manuela about the plans to get you both in there with Crane. She and I already came up with two different code names for you and Helena during your undercover work and also what you're careers have been and whom you work for."

Hunnigan took out a folder containing the documents Leon needed and gently handed them over to the somewhat concerned agent. He took a look at the names as he skimmed over the fake back stories and personal bio.

"Jackson H. McDougal and Rosalie L. Ferro-McDougal…the names almost seem too fancy."

Leon said as he slightly smirked while glancing over the rest of the mess before him.

"Cut us a break it was no easy task trying to find two dead billionaires from way back when who weren't well known to use as cover names. The couple you are posing as died about twenty five years ago in a plane crash. They use to own a company that was heavily invested in Umbrella's activities in France. To keep their children and other family members safe from being hunted down because they accidentally let loose some well guarded information, they had all documents and all traces of them extinguished from the world. The only people who know about them now are us. As far as we know no one else in Crane's little high society club knows of them either."

"I'm not sure I'm so cut out for acting like a guy with a silver spoon in his mouth."

Hunnigan crossed her arms and laughed a bit as she smirked.

"From what Helena told me you were a pretty good actor in high school, Leon."

He briefly shot Hunnigan a glare as he started to piece some things together.

"There is no way you could have known about that unless—"

"Oh I talked her a bit on the phone briefly."

Leon rolled his eyes a bit but then a sudden pain hit him. He glanced over the documents one more time as he could see Helena's name typed above Rosalie's. He closed his eyes briefly before talking once more with Ingrid.

"Does she know the entirety about the mission?"

Hunnigan shook her head and could sense the negativity emitting from Leon.

"No, I just asked if you were a good actor then I got cut off because the doctors needed to inspect her. Why do you ask?"

Leon looked up at Hunnigan sadly as he swallowed his pride and began to say the words he never wanted to utter.

"I want you to take Helena off the case."

Hunnigan's eyes lightly widened.

"W-what? Why would you want to do that? You're partners."

"And we're married."

"All the more reason the act would be pulled off better."

"All the more reason she or I could get killed easier. If anyone was to find us out I don't know what I would do if she was in the enemies hands. Hunnigan, I was such an emotional wreck during this last mission with her that I nearly lost sight of everything else. I don't want to come close to losing her again. She's all I have left. I'd die inside if I ever brought myself into taking her on another one of these dangerous feats especially with the condition she's in. I can't let her suffer and I can't let myself be dragged down to my lowest point by someone as monstrous as Crane if he were to ever use Helena against me."

Hunnigan paused and studied his features. He was serious, calm, but mostly just depressed. Hunnigan never heard him talk so protectively over Helena before and she began to wonder now herself it was a good idea to have Helena take on the mission in the first place.

"She's your wife though and one of our best agents. You can't just take off with another agent and not tell her what is going on. I'm going to have to tell her she's off the case, but it's up to you to spill it to her that you're the one who asked for it. Look I understand your logic and reasoning behind this. You came close to losing her within this last week, and I know how much your feelings are invested to her and how it can make you impulsive. I can see it in your eyes now. I'm no marriage counselor or relationship expert as you know, but I think what you're doing to her is wrong."

"I'm keeping her safe from the danger that—"

"Leon, you're sheltering her. She can take care of herself, and she did a good job before you both tied the knot and I'm sure she could do it again. I think she needs your trust not you're protection."

Leon bowed his head a bit and stroked his hair a while he rubbed the back of his neck. He was already feeling sad and angry enough about this decision he had reached, but like with any goal he was determined to make it happen. He would trust no one else but Helena with his life, but when it came down to it he'd rather have her home safe and sound away from the nightmares and hell than to potentially die by his side and not live a full life that she deserved. He briefly thought back to the times where they both almost died together: The Middle East with Spokovitch and his B.O.W hell hole, Kent's attempt to murder them both, and Operation Jarvis where they almost died by taking bullets to the chest. Leon knew Helena could handle her own but if Bora Bora was infested with Crane's monsters like he was assuming, he knew very well Helena could get infected again. He had been forewarned by the scientists who created the serum to help her out warned that based on their evidence from trial runs in the past with mice, if Helena were god forbid to achieve another infection there would be no chance for her coming back. It was not something Leon was willing to risk not even if Helena was the best agent or the only person in the world he could trust to have his back the entire time during a mission.

"Hunnigan,"

He got up and stared at her so intensely it even made someone as composed as her break down a little bit.

"Just do it."

No words were exchanged between the two of them but in that moment of silence they reached their agreement. Leon quietly left the office and began to head back to the spare bed room he was in so he could finish getting ready for the day. The entire time he traveled back alongside Chris following him and filling him in on Jill, the only thing he could concentrate on was how he was going to have to deal with Helena's potential wrath.

Helena was discharged from the hospital shortly after two in the afternoon once more tests were complete. So far she was looking good and her blood levels were back to normal. She carried with her some vitamin D and B pills provided from Sasha and Claire kindly decided to take her home to her and Leon's apartment. The drive was quite pleasant between the two girls as they talked about what had been going on the last week. Claire explained most of what occurred with Markus to her, and Helena felt bad she jumped to conclusions with him after figuring out how much effort he had put in to help set things right for not telling anyone about the assassination attempt on his life. On the way back the girls stopped by at a café to get some drinks before taking their beverages home. They both cheerfully walked up the flight of stairs and into the apartment and Helena breathed in deeply, feeling happy to be home at last.

"I think Leon's going to be very happy coming home and seeing you again."

Claire said as she jumped onto the couch playfully, taking extreme precaution to not let the coffee spill onto the ground or herself for that matter.

"Yeah, I'm thankful he cares a lot about me. I don't think I would have made it out of that dark place had it not been for him awaiting me once I'd snap out of being sick."

Helena took a seat across from Claire and began sipping at her drink. Claire sighed a bit as she could see Helena look rather sad but at the same time radiant.

"Hey Helena you've been kind of off throughout the car trip. Is something the matter?"

Helena was paused for a moment while she thought about the conversation Sasha and she had. Her eyes grew wearily to Claire's question as she shook her head.

"No, I'm quite fine just exhausted. It's not easy combating a T-Virus form."

"Amen to that. I think you're quite courageous and lucky to have lived through that. The docs said though that if you get infected again then you're a goner right?"

"Yeah, that is correct. Sad to say but it looks like my nine lives are up."

She smiled bitterly as she and Claire both lightly laughed.

"Still, it seems like you got something on your mind."

Helena looked at Claire longingly as friends should and closed her eyes as she sat the coffee down onto the nearby table and leaned back into the chair.

"What would you do if you had a limited amount of time to let Leon know something drastic and dangerous was going to occur?"

Claire's eyes were fixated on Helena as she took notice of the brunette staring up at the ceiling almost in a trance like state. She found the question odd but didn't see any harm in giving her two cents.

"Depends on the circumstance. If it was life threatening I'd tell him right away. Just sit him down and let him know. Now if it's something bad but not as big then I'd wait until it felt right especially since you just now got out of the hospital. I'm not going to pry, but I need to ask you why did you ask me that question?"

"It's complicated…"

Claire could see the sadness in her voice and facial expressions as she looked down to the ground. Claire glanced up and down at her as her eyes focused onto her stomach as Helena took in a deep breath. For some reason after listening in a bit on Sasha's conversation she had with Helena in regards to the vitamin supplements to keep her health in check along with more warnings about the serum and her health, Claire almost had a gut instinct reach out to her and to Helena and tell her everything was going to be alright but given what she was assuming at the time and Helena's subtle body hints no amount of affection from a friend would do any good with the crisis she was facing.

"You're going to be alright, someway..."

She said sweetly as Helena looked up at her and nodded. Claire looked sad for Helena now understanding the pain she must have been baring on herself.

"Claire, could you go hand me my lap top please?"

Claire nodded and traveled over to Helena and Leon's bed room. She looked around the room trying to figure out where the Toshiba was at until she followed the charging cable. She got on her knees and looked underneath the bed to find the lap top intact. Claire took it off the charger then walked back into the living room and gently handed it off to Helena who was turning it on. While they waited for it to reboot itself the girls talked about happier topics and much needed time to vent out their frustrations to one another. Helena thought it was nice that Claire could understand her feelings, and next to Leon she was probably one of the best go to person out there to converse with about deeper life issues. She was happy though that when she had asked the red head the question about her dilemma that she didn't try to butt in too much. With all the stress she was carrying from the news the last thing she needed was someone from the outside of her and Leon's relationship trying to lecture her.

The laptop finally managed to get itself in check after a half hour or so. Helena swore up and down that one of these days she and Leon needed to get a new one. Helena decided to go onto the main government site and check up on any new updates from Chris and Leon's research. She also took a moment to message Sherry and Jake after finding out they had to leave during the time she was in the hospital back for Europe because a big crisis came up in Germany that needed their attention. After taking care of that she checked her email and personal logging data. She let out a faint gasp upon seeing that Leon was going on a mission but that she was denied a part of it. Claire took notice of her sudden reaction and came over and even her face lit up.

"Wait—no, Leon wouldn't have done that."

"Maybe this is just some mistake,"

Helena began to try to access some of the important information in regards to the mission at large. Denied, denied, access denied. It was all that could be seen on the screen before her. Her first clenched a bit as she could feel frustration radiate through her body.

"Claire I hate to cut things short but do you think I could have some privacy?"

Claire instantly red the message from Helena's tone of voice and slowly backed off as she nodded.

"Yeah, um, besides I have some more campaign stuff to manage for the next bioterrorism rally. I'll talk to you later."

She quietly left the apartment leaving Helena to herself. Out of impulse she hit the keyboard of the laptop with her fist and groaned. Luckily nothing was broken but inside she couldn't believe that Hunnigan and the higher ups took her off this case. Ever since she had awakened, aside from the dreary news she was told, catching the man responsible for this and her life now being thrown into a three sixty was at the top the list of things to accomplish. She sighed as she rubbed her forehead, hoping this was some joke.

"No, Leon would never do this…"

She found herself mumbling as she awaited him in the apartment, feeling betrayed and angered.

Leon was finished filling up his last entry into his personal log for new recruits about what had happened last week. As part of SURGE's training program, Jill requested that since Leon was a veteran at B.O.W's and handling them that it would be wise if he could vlog about what to do in dangerous situations and Jill would compress them and make them into personal training videos she'd use. Leon was kind of embarrassed to do it but once he got into the swing of things he somewhat appreciated it. He sincerely hoped that by telling his side of things it would do the new guys some good, knowing what they were going to be getting into by taking on such dangerous jobs. He quietly took the video camera down to SURGE headquarters which was about a ten minute walk or so away from the main building and delivered it to a man near the front desk. After taking care of that he began the long trek home.

Leon fumbled through his pockets as he took out the keys and got ready to unlock the apartment door. He was surprised however when he gently tugged the door handle and it opened up. He quietly walked in as he sighed and tossed his jacket to the floor. As he glided through the living room he took notice right away of Helena sitting on the couch, she looked up at him with a sorrowful look as he rushed up to her and lightly picked her up from the seat while he planted a kiss on her left cheek.

"Hey I didn't think I'd be seeing you back right now! This is a nice surprise."

He said sweetly as Helena returned a modest kiss to him. Leon's happy mood instantly went down a bit as he looked upon his wife with concern. He stroked her hair a bit and took notice of her eyes, seeing that she had been crying beforehand.

"Hon, did something happen?"

He asked sincerely as Helena nodded.

"Yeah, I just saw that you and Chris figured out who the man was whom was responsible for this mess. Then when I tried to access any crucial information, I've been denied. Plus I'm not on the case with you. Do you mind telling me what is going on Leon?"

Leon's mouth lightly gaped as he closed his eyes and sighed, taking a moment to rub the back of his head as he could see Helena's eyebrows furrow into a slight glare.

"I did it. I took you off."

"Leon why did you do that?"

"I'm only trying to keep you safe."

He said modestly as he walked over to the kitchen and over by the fridge. Helena walked over to him, determined to get a better explanation.

"Leon, I have every right to be on that case. Because of that man, what's his fuck Crane I almost ended up turning into a monster."

Leon took out a small glass of orange juice from the fridge and headed over to the counter.

"All the more reason you shouldn't be out there taking this man on. If he was clever enough to plan a successful attack on our main government headquarters, think about what he could do if he found out about you and I on the mission."

Helena couldn't believe she was hearing this and she could feel herself become more irritated. She took in a deep breath and took a seat across from Leon looking at him with a deep intensity. Since she didn't know how much time she had left taking on this case with Leon would probably be her last one.

"Well if I can't go then you shouldn't either."

"Helena I need to do this for us. I'm going to get justice for us both and—"

"Leon, we're partners. When we got married we promised to be there for one another no matter what could happen."

Leon sighed deeply as he closed his eyes and took a sip of the drink. He knew Helena was dead right on their vows and it pained him more knowing what he had committed.

"Helena,"

He sat the glass down gently as he came over to her and wrapped his arms around her body. Clutching her close to him he deeply breathed in her presence.

"I am doing this because I refuse to lose you. Can't you see I'm trying to protect you?"

Helena almost wanted to melt into his arms but her pride as an agent was getting at her. Sure she understood Leon had no ill intentions but doing this behind her back hurt, and it made her feel inadequate.

"Leon I know you're trying to save me but you know as well as I that whoever else they partner you up with won't be as good. Me and you are a great team; we've been through so much and for you to just take me off without my acknowledgement is terrible. Just because we're married doesn't mean you have rights to do that to me. I'm more than capable of handling this."

Helena gently pushed Leon away from her, feeling the sting of betrayal seep in.

"Lena I know you're more than perfect for this but the fact remains is that I love you. It's a weakness I know that if Crane was able to extract at any point during the mission, I'd fail it."

"So you think I'm just a burden?"

She crossed her arms, and Leon could tell she was now officially mad at him.

"No, you're not a burden but I don't want someone that mad and powerful to take my loved one hostage and use her against me. I don't know what I would do if anything like that happened to you and being powerless to stop it."

"Leon, you can tell me that all you want but the truth of it is you're afraid I'll side track you from the mission. I heard about how you flipped during the hospital visits."

Leon recalled being forced out of the hospital wing numerous times during the first few days of Helena's captivity. He could remember seeing them connecting the IV's to her skin and how she flailed around and screamed while the needles pierced her skin. He wanted to go over there and hit the men for not being gentle enough with her as her skin changed more and more gray with each passing minute. He managed to get through long enough to hold her hand before he was physically thrown out. He could still feel the intensity of Helena's grip on his fingers as he was pried away from her and cast out. Leon focused his attention back to Helena who was still staring him down with her glare.

"I can't let anything distract me from the mission at hand. I can't put you at risk and I'm not going to let something like last week happen to you once more. I already know that if you get infected again there is no chance in you living. This is really hard for me as it is you but I'm doing this with the best intentions."

"Best intentions,"

She scoffed and turned away from him as she faced the wall, clenching her fists as she could feel herself becoming more emotional.

"Some of the worst things imaginable are done because of those."

Leon touched her shoulder but she flinched back away from him. He was taken aback as she faced him momentarily.

"Leon, as far as I am concerned you're no better than the people who didn't think I had what it took to become an agent to begin with."

"Lena I—"

"Save it Leon…you've done enough."

She walked off and slammed the door to their room shut leaving Leon alone in the kitchen. He bowed his head as the muscles behind his eyes clenched while he closed them. He slowly headed over towards the couch nearby and slumped into it. Leon wanted to desperately go to the room and try to counsel her but knowing Helena and her pride, it wouldn't do much. He looked over at some photographs that were framed on the table in front of him seeing how happy Helena and himself were in Italy. Right now his biggest regret was coming back to the states. He gently picked up one of the photos of them smiling up at the camera and cuddling close to the other. Ever since they returned home, nothing but madness awaited them. Leon in this moment of reflection took the time to determine whether or not he made the right choice in everything.


	12. Chapter 12: Discarded

**I said this would be out Friday but I got done with a project and managed to whip it out. Special thanks to Poynton90 for helping me out with some of the story development. As always, thank you guys for keeping up with the reading, I hope you enjoy it! Don't forget you are more than welcome to leave a review, or PM me if you have any suggestions or feedback. Enjoy!**

Another week soon passed as Leon got prepped up for the trip to New York City. Hunnigan strictly called for another week off so Leon could assist Helena if she was still not feeling well. It took a lot of time and effort but eventually Helena decided to let go of being mad at Leon for the time being. She knew he meant well in keeping her safe and as the hours drew near to where Leon would be taking off, she had severe contemplations. During the week she was half tempted to just blurt out the news to him with no questions asked, but with how extremely paranoid he's been in terms of her health she decided against it. Helena knew she wouldn't be able to keep this up forever, and she acknowledged as the months would drag on he'd start to notice the changes in her. She was already starting to show some symptoms of the progress from what Sasha had told her, especially with the random bursts of pain in her lower abdomen and upper back. Now and again she'd twitch bad or would start coughing much to Leon's sadness.

Deep down he knew there was something going on with Helena as he took notice of her ups and downs, but he decided not to pry until she wanted to share with him. Her words from earlier on in the week haunted him especially when she accused him of not having faith in her abilities as an agent. Even now as he was packing, a huge burn of regret was radiating throughout his body. He managed to pull off the Jackson character he was suppose to portray at the New York class party quite nicely, but the female agent assigned to the case in Helena's absence was still at odds with herself. Leon could recall meeting her for the first time and how timid she was. Sure, part of the plan was to have Rosalie appear fragile and feminine but with this rookie, it was a tad bit too far. Leon already had his worries about being caught right on the spot that or not even coming close to Crane and being allowed within the inner circle of his upper class posy.

Leon packed up some of his weapons in a small carrying case as he went over the mission in his head. The first course of action was to attend the Crane Education Benefit held in New York within the upper town area where Wesley would make his appearance for a fundraiser. Leon and the other agent would then have to find a way to appease the man so that they could both be welcomed to the second party held in lower Manhattan, and then work their way to the third and final Crane Family Benefit then somehow work into the conversation they wanted to purchase some fine B.O.W's from Crane's getaway in Bora Bora. After which if both he and his partner were successful, they would have to send some sort of signal to Hunnigan back at headquarters and Chris plus the SURGE team would take care of the rest by going in and arresting Wesley along with whoever else was present. It seemed fairly simple, but in the grand scheme of things Leon was already feeling troubled by it. He knew that by not having Helena things would be harder, but it was his wish to keep her safe from any of this. He knew letting her go and staying here was the only way he could protect her.

After Leon was done packing he and Helena had a long goodbye as they embraced one another and kissed passionately. If everything went smooth he would be back within a month, but depending on how long it took to get to Crane's circle it may even be longer if the first attempt fails. All the parties are held within two to three weeks apart and Helena grew dreary thinking about Leon being away for so long. She hugged him real tight and took in a breath as he stroked her hair.

"You better stay safe. I won't be there to bail you out now."

She said sadly, a part of her still trying to minor guilt trip him for taking her off the case.

"Don't worry; I'll be back before you know it. Be sure to call me up after eight pm when it's safe for me to talk in the hotel rooms if they aren't bugged. But if you have an emergency or you're not feeling good, let me know first thing and I'll do whatever I can to get off the case and come home to you."

"Leon, you're being too paranoid. Nothing is going to happen to me."

Helena wanted to pinch herself for saying that and lying to him. She wondered in the back of her mind if this was the same dreadful feelings Leon had felt when he found it difficult to tell her two years ago that Ada planned on taking her life. Leon kissed her forehead, making her forget about her problem and focusing her attention back to their final goodbye.

"Lena you know I'd gladly let you go with me if there wasn't a chance for infection right?"

Helena nodded as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Of course. Don't worry so much now. I understand."

"Alright…I'm going to miss you like crazy."

Helena and Leon kissed each other for a little bit before she broke the contact and smiled.

"Cheer up we will see one another soon. Hey, remember what Manuela said? If all goes well we get a complimentary month off because of this mess."

Leon smirked and buried his face in the crook of Helena's neck making her laugh.

"I'll take you on a trip back to Italy and we can drink and be merry together."

"I don't think you need the drinking Leon and quit tickling me! You need to go!"

Leon and she laughed together for the last time before they held each other close. It felt like the longest embrace they ever had as their inner fears began to pick up as the clock ticked for Leon to get going.

"I love you more than you can imagine."

Leon said as he took the time to take in every inch of Helena with his eyes.

"I know you do. You'll see me soon enough. I love you so much."

After another quick hug and kiss Leon took off in the car and began to head for the airport as Helena waved to see him off. After she took notice of the car now turning into a mere speck in the distance, she smirked and ran up the apartment as quickly as she could. Helena burst into their room and began throwing random things into a backpack she had that was pre-packaged with belongings. Once that was on the bed and ready to go, she went to the small book shelf near her side of the bed and unhinged a secret compartment from the side containing the files of Rosalie. She grinned to herself thinking about how she was able to pull off keeping this hidden from Leon as she quickly ran over to the closet and grabbed the butterfly hair clip from Ada. Helena managed to use her foot to glide over to the dresser drawer and dial for Claire.

"Hey Helena, what's up?"

"Think you can get me to the airport in fifteen minutes flat?"

"Um, yeah if I speed! Why are you rushing?"

Helena walked over to the mirror nearby the dresser and smiled as she put the clip in her hair while brushing madly.

"I got a party to attend."

Leon managed to make it to the airport after twenty minutes or so. He managed to go through the check points with no hassle. If there was one thing he was thankful for about being reinstated as an agent in the US, the checkpoint passes were something he missed. Sure, he didn't mind going through security and even welcomed it because of all the problems in the past with the airliners but with the stress he was feeling, avoiding the check outs at all time was good for his psyche. He began to grow afraid however when he came to the large terminal and couldn't find his partner anywhere. It was already getting to be the time when the plane was going to take off for New York and he didn't know what to do. If he were to wait for the agent, they'd miss the flight and would have to wait another day or so until the next one would be available thus missing the first crucial party to attend. However, if he went on the plane himself he'd have to end up dealing with Crane one on one, which might make things harder because evidently Crane is weary of men who aren't in relationships. According to some records Markus had managed to dig out Crane didn't approve well of men who couldn't stay committed and family oriented. Leon thought that was somewhat amusing, considering the man is a bioterrorist and black market expert.

As the clock ticked Leon realized by now at this point the agent wasn't going to make it. He decided against his own judgment to board the plane by himself. If all failed he figured he might be able to contact Ada and see if she could provide some help. He didn't like this and knew this was a risky move on his part on many levels, not to mention he really didn't want to see her again after what happened during Operation Jarvis. As he flashed the ticket to the keeper and headed onto the plane, he began to wonder if Ada had been alright given the emotional struggle she had been going through at the time. Sure, he didn't have feelings for her like he does Helena but despite all the wrong she had done there was still a part of him that still cared for Ada like family. Leon knew his boundaries however, and especially with the last fight Helena and him had over Ada he focused on making it a priority to only talk to the mysterious woman if it was an emergency. He didn't want to jeopardize Helena's trust in him and let it lead to further problems much like he had in the past with Angela when they dated. Also he wasn't going to let that incident with Ada dictate his marriage. As much as he felt sad for Ada at the time, he knew circumstance or not there was no way he could go back to her.

Leon finally made it onto the plane and took a seat towards the mid section of the first class section. He leaned back into the chair and sighed as he looked out the window briefly, taking in the sights of the terminal and the workers below. He really didn't care for planes too well especially with what happened during the WilPharma scandal years prior. Ever since then, some part of him always grew weary of planes for he could see how easy it is to hijack one and plant a virus on board. Even now as he was waiting patiently for the plane to take off, he wanted to get out of there quick. He rubbed his eyes, still feeling tired from getting up so early in the morning to pack as he could remember Helena comforting him the last time they rode a plane together. A part of him smiled as he closed his eyes, thinking that the pair of them had their faults with planes and the many times accidents have occurred because they had both been on one together. Leon then jokingly began to think that maybe since Helena wasn't going to be riding the plane with him, no bad luck would occur.

"Pardon me, is this seat taken?"

Leon's ears took a moment to register the voice until he could detect the gentleness. He snapped up from the seat and his eyes went wide.

"Helena!? What are you doing here?"

He moved out of her way and allowed her to take the seat to the window as he was trying to take in the sight of her being in his presence. A bit of frustration arose within him as he tried to come to terms with the fact Helena was now seemingly on the mission.

"How did you get here so quick?"

He asked still flabbergasted by her being right beside him as she buckled up.

"I told the agent you were supposed to be with that she had been reassigned to another case. Then I had Claire drop me off and here we are."

"What about Hunnigan and Manuela?"

"Oh, I got them to reinstate me on the case at the last second. They were quite happy to hear you were fine with me going."

Helena winked at him much to Leon's agitation. He was happy to have her by his side again on yet another mission, but inside he was frantic because of the events from earlier on. Leon stopped and pondered for a moment as Helena got situated when he started to connect the pieces together. Helena for the last week had done nothing but read a certain anatomy book. He knew very well she loved reading in her spare time, but for something such as anatomy which he recalled her saying it was "light reading" sounded fishy. At the time he paid no heed to it however and just assumed she had taken up an interest. Based on that and the fact she tried to keep certain pages hidden to herself, Leon deduced she must have snuck the case file on Rosalie into the book and had been looking at it to get herself prepped for the mission. He smirked as he shook his head dismayed by what was going on. The plane was beginning to take off so there was no chance in sending her off now or getting too angry about it. Leon still was troubled by her being here and knew the mission was going to be harder in some ways and now easier in others.

"At the very least do you know what is going to be happening? Also what did you pack?"

Helena adjusted in her seat as she braced herself for the take off as the plane came to the land strip.

"We are supposed to attend three parties and at each one get close to Crane as possible and welcomed into the inner circle. I only packed a few small hand guns because we are suppose to keep the weapons discreet .Also as Rosalie, I'm to be kept to myself but have a bit of spunk once in a while. According to the general guidelines; I'm supposed to be a modest wife and basically my sole purpose is to support you and your investments."

"You already failed in that department."

Leon said with a sly smile as Helena looked at him with a frown. She knew very well his response was referring to Helena sneaking onto the mission despite them going over repeatedly it was too risky for her. Helena shrugged it off though and held Leon's hand, feeling him grip her tightly as he looked into her eyes with seriousness.

"As much as I am disappointed you decided to go through with this, I'm glad you're going to back me up. Don't think you are going to be getting off easy for this though once we go home."

Helena was taken aback as she rolled her eyes and smiled.

"Oh please, you couldn't even hurt me if you wanted to. Don't worry so much about the task at hand. You honestly didn't think I was going to let you leave and have all the fun did you?"

"Some part of me shouldn't be surprised, but the other part wants to take you home and lock you up in the room."

He said honestly as he adjusted the seat so he could lean father back into it as his arms went around his head to give cushion. Helena copied him as they looked over at one another. Leon's face grew with an uneasy presence as he began to speak up.

"If anything happens to you I don't know what I'd do. You better promise me if anything gets out of hand you get yourself out, no matter what it takes. Even if it means leaving me behind for whatever reason."

Helena shook her head with a slight nod.

"You know I can't abandon you."

"I know, but I'm asking you not as your husband but as your best friend. Do me that favor at the very least to make up for you sneaking onto this behind my back and not telling me jack shit."

Helena knew he was mad, even though he tried to sound playful the ending gave Leon away. Helena merely nodded at him with a half promise as she faced the other direction. She could tell at this point it wouldn't be good talking with Leon for his tension and defensive side was showing a little bit. Leon took in a large sigh as he rubbed his forehead while gazing at Helena momentarily, not sure of how he was going to keep her safe as it consumed his thoughts the entire trip to New York.

Hours since the plane took off had come to pass. Leon and Helena managed to get out of the airport terminal and got themselves booked into a hotel close to the first benefit Crane would be hosting. The party was to start at ten at night then end sometime around one in the morning. The pair both found it a bit odd that a party such as that would be remaining open until late, but they assumed it was probably because of Crane's little side deals. They only had a few hours to get fully ready for the event and they both started to grow nervous as the time drew near.

Helena was in the bathroom putting on one of the many expensive dresses that were personally tailored by Hunnigan and the other staff members back at head quarters. All of Leon's attire and hers were already pre-sent to the hotel they were staying at two days prior to the mission. It was a long silky white gown with gold trimming around the edges accompanied by a golden like belt for the mid section of her belly. Helena was not one for wearing dresses, and even in her wedding gown she felt like it was too much. She started to put it on though begrudgingly as she looked upon herself in the mirror. Helena took a moment to make sure her make-up was on alright, seeing the different shades of pink hit her face along with the black eye liner than made her eyes stand out more. To top it off she lightly fluffed her hair out a bit and placed the butterfly clip in her hair. If there was anything she could appreciate right now, Ada's gift would be the main thing. She slowly walked out of the bathroom after putting on a gold bracelet on her left wrist and looked around for Leon.

Helena drifted off into the bedroom and managed to find him wearing a tux with some dress pants. He even had his long hair slicked back. She crossed her arms while she leaned in the door way and smirked as he lightly smiled at her direction.

"How do I look?"

He asked with a sly tone in his voice as Helena glanced up and down at him, taking in the new look she wasn't used to.

"Like a guy who's got everything."

Leon found himself taking in how the dress Helena was wearing was complimenting her curves. Though he knew deep down she wasn't fond of dolling herself up, she did a rather good job for someone who doesn't lavish on themselves often. He came up to her and gently pressed his lips to hers, trying to make her feel more comfortable for he could tell right off the get go she wasn't too impressed with this attire.

"You look gorgeous."

"I feel like a cheap hooker."

"Most billionaire wives probably are."

"Oh Leon, that's mean."

He lightly smirked at her while chuckling.

"You were probably thinking the same thing. Don't get all coy now. Also the name is Jackson, remember?"

Helena rolled her eyes as she grinned at Leon. After they took care of some last minute things with their disguises, they came into the living room area of the hotel and sat down on the couch nearby. Leon took out a personal lap top from a backpack he had for the trip as they began to look over some things. The pair then decided to give one another a mission debrief before heading out into the open as Leon was responding to an email.

"So what is the plan you and the other agent had so far?"

Helena asked as she watched Leon begin to type.

"Well, thanks to Chris digging up some info on Excella Gionne one of the bioterrorists he faced in Africa, we found out she has a sister named Vixayla who happens to be one of Kent's old clients whose now getting her cargo from Crane. She's now a personal head director of Tricell, at least in terms of the economic department. Turns out she's not too quiet in the B.O.W black market. I managed to pin point her business somewhere off Australia. I already took on the Jackson alias a few days ago and made contact with her. Using government money provided to us by Manuela and signed off by the president, we both came to an arrangement and I just paid her about two million dollars for some hard to get B.O.W's. Half of it though I'm investing into her Lepotitsa program she's been trying to raise money for but hasn't had such luck getting investors to fund the project. In exchange for that little bonus, she managed to get me and you passes into the first party as a token of her thanks. Without her doing that, there is no way we could have got in."

Helena nodded but then a thought occurred to her as she already felt repulsed that they were already buying B.O.W's off the get go.

"Wait, if we already purchased them then where are the B.O.W's going to be sent off too?"

"The old compound where the real McDougal family lived. It's still in one piece thanks to Jake and Sherry. They managed to get it cleaned up and they will be posing as the keepers of the estate in France while we are here to attend the parties. I'm supposed to give her another five grand as a holding fee because I purchased two Hunters. I guess from what I could gather after doing research into the market, they are much harder to come by now because of the process they have to go through to make those things. Once the Hunters are delivered to the compound, Jake and Sherry already got a team that will dispose of them then they will make their way to her Australian base and dismantle it after we get Crane."

Helena was surprised at how out of the loop she had been so far. Sure she did catch up on a lot of the plans for the mission, but for Leon to already go ahead and make a pact with another bioterrorist was a lot to take in, especially knowing he purchased Hunters. Helena was aware though that in order to appease bioterrorists, if one tends to pick the rarer of the B.O.W types the better luck they will trust that said person who made the purchase. Her stomach churned though because the last time she checked, the terrorists in the black market were finding female hosts to carry these creatures to term. The original method was to inject reptilian DNA into a human embryo accompanied by the T-Virus then let the test tube handle the rest, but in later 2005 the new method, inserting the embryo into a mother host proved to create more viable monsters that happened to be stronger and intellectually successful compared to the originals. Helena couldn't help but feel a pain of disheartened sadness overcome her, knowing innocents were going to be sacrificed because of the purchase Leon had made, and knowing how painful the process would be for the female hosts who would have to literally have their body ripped open from head to toe in order for the creatures to live. Leon glanced over at Helena, and could see some slight tears form in the corner of her eyes as he grasped her hand.

"I don't like this as much as you. I'm already sickened but we got no other choice."

He said tenderly, trying to calm down Helena so she could have a clear mind before they were to leave.

"Catching Crane and the rest of those people should make up for it I hope."

Her voice sounded wounded as Leon glanced at her concerned while he sent off the email to Vixayla with the five grand wire transfer. He then gently shut the lap top down and pulled Helena close to him, feeling her sorrow almost melt into his body as he too thought about what was going to happen.

"Are you sure you're going to be able to handle this?"

Helena pulled away from him a bit as she looked into his eyes, almost wishing she didn't decide to go with him because technically they were having people murdered.

"I'm sure of it. We better head off to the party and see if we can get a clear shot to Crane."

"Alright, but I need to ask you something."

"What would that be?"

"During the week you seemed off, like more sick than usual here and there. Is there something going on with the serum? You threw up quite a bit and I'm just wondering if it's a side effect or something I need to be worried about."

_One of many_ Helena thought to herself as she took in Leon's question. She wanted to tell him, but as usual, wrong time and wrong place to bring up something so terrible. Helena glanced up at Leon and smiled the best she could, knowing she was burning yet another hole into her heart by not forewarning him of what the serum was doing to her. She already knew the pair were going to face a lot of tension and uneasiness with this mission, the last thing she needed to do was bring out a huge can of worms and throw it into the mix. However despite this she was beginning to grow grievous because symptoms such as throwing up were not to occur until much later, or so everyone thought.

"It's just a simple thing because my body isn't used to it. Sasha said it will clear up overtime. So to answer your question, yeah it's just a side effect."

"Alright,"

Leon briefly kissed her forehead and tried his best to look happy.

"You ready to go, Rosalie?"

Helena found her lips curving into a smile as she nodded in regards to his question. They both got up and headed out the door. Once they made their way downstairs and outside into the city, they took in the sights before heading into a personal limo that was provided for them by Vixayla. As they both went inside, they managed to collect themselves fully and were in character. Helena stared out of the window; taking in the dazzling lights of New York with a huge part of her hoping this night would go smooth while at the same time praying she wouldn't show any other signs of sickness.


	13. Chapter 13: Isolated

**Thanks for being patient about the next chapter. I appreciate it. I have to let you know it may be hard for me to whip one out this week cause I have a lot of stuff coming my way, but I will do my best! Keep a look out for the next one, and as always feel free to review or PM me! Enjoy!**

The traffic in New York seemed to drag on forever as the pair finally made it to one of the main Crane Enterprise buildings located in the upper level of the city. Before the driver was to get out and open the door, both Leon and Helena checked out the crowd from the window. There was already about three hundred people just waiting near the huge front gate entryway, and several were on the sidelines drinking and chatting up a storm as if they had not a care in the world. Helena knew all of these people weren't bioterrorists, and probably only a handful of them were in relations with Crane's work but seeing how care free they were being made her angry. She didn't know why, but she deduced it was probably due to how she was raised as a child. For a long time she didn't happen to like the upper class folk in the states mainly because as a young girl she was picked on by the children of the high and mighty. Helena focused her attention back to the main door and she could see near the front two men were gathering the passes from other fellow guests. She gently tugged at Leon's leg out of a frantic fit going on her mind as she grew overwhelmed by how many people were flocking.

"How are we supposed to get close to Crane with a horde of these people crowding the area?"

She said as Leon glanced at her with a light look of uncertainty.

"Well, we are to see Vixayla because she wanted to meet us in person before she signs off on the Hunter purchase. I think she might be the key to giving us the upper hand on Crane."

He took Helena's hand and squeezed it tightly, allowing her to give the tension and uncomfortable feelings lurking within her a chance to be let out.

"We got this hon. _You_ got this,"

Before he could say any other reassuring words to his wife, the door the limo opened up and he gently adjusted his grip onto Helena's hand as they both exited out of the vehicle. Helena tried her hardest to smile as they both headed to the line awaiting entrance to Crane's party. She couldn't help but take notice of some people glancing at her and Leon. On the occasion it looked as if some of the larger parties of four or more people would whisper about them. New money perhaps? It was all Helena could contemplate in regards to their reactions upon seeing her and Leon together. She could feel her dress tuck and fit to her body as they began to move farther ahead in the line, eventually with Leon handing off the passes to the men up front and being allowed inside with no questions asked.

The pair was both taken aback as to how large and extravagant everything was. Large chandeliers lit up the ceiling and an endless flock of stair cases and deck like structures filled the room as did the glimmering shine of marble that their feet were gently placed upon. Helena and Leon had never seen anything like this before, and for a moment they could have sworn they broke out of character. Once their eyes adjusted to seeing all of the magnificence of the buildings structure before them, they walked around arm in arm trying to see if they could have any indication as to who Crane or Vixayla might look like. They could hear the chirping sounds of music playing in the background as they received brief nods of welcome from some of the other people in the room. Helena almost felt under dressed to an extent seeing how much more bizarre half the clothing apparel appeared to be on the women in the main hall. Leon himself was beginning to feel like there was still some part of him that screamed "agent" or even "cop" as he glanced around and checked out the other characters around Helena and him. They stopped near a dragon like statue which from the looks of things, was probably worth millions. Helena and Leon both smiled and nodded to others who took notice of them and from the looks of things people were beginning to take interest. Once in a while someone would randomly talk to them or ask how their day had been going, and just like the script Helena mostly allowed Leon to do the talking so he could establish some dominance within the upper class. Evidently, Crane really admired men who showed their status with no problem and could even take on leadership qualities. Women though, he preferred them staying out of the main business of their husbands unless they were single. Helena wasn't certain if all of this was true, but it was the best Markus could remember of his godfather when he was asked what the man's personality was like.

After a good while had passed, the pair lost track as to how many people came and went. Helena stuck to mostly conversing with the wives of the other businessmen while Leon dealt with the husbands. It seemed that so far, in the eyes of everyone around them they both appeared to be an atypical upper class couple with a lot going on for them. Leon flushed out time and time again about the fake business he had been leading on trying to find alternative means of producing better medicines and looking to genetic engineering much to everyone's admiration. Evidently the McDougal's originally owned their own pharmaceutical company before Umbrella had bought them out long ago when stocks went crashing. Because of the real secrecy behind the McDougal workings, no one even knew such a thing existed. Helena was thankful Leon was able to pull off being a snob so well, because he had a whole crowd of people just eating at his palms when he mentioned his workings.

As Helena was receiving compliments on her attire, a woman in a black dress accompanied by a golden like choker on her throat started to approach her. She had her hair in a tight bun and her green eyes were thick with black eye liner. Helena could make out the details of her nails, seeing how polished they were as the woman beckoned for the other ladies at bay to leave them be. Helena acted calm though inside she was wondering what the deal was. The young woman's lips curved into a smile as her lip gloss shimmered under the light.

"You must be Rosalie McDougal."

The woman said in a sweet yet strong Italian accent.

"Yes, I am. And you are—"

"Vixayla Gionne, the one who you're husband made the investment with. I heard that you were most pleased upon finding out where the money would be going too, children's orphanages and such."

Helena didn't know if the woman was trying to sound sarcastic or if she was just that evil to begin with. She knew all too well the children's orphanage was a gimmick to make them appear like well to do billionaires while they dealt with far deadlier schemes under the table. Helena only smiled and nodded as she gently placed her hand on Leon's shoulder, capturing his attention.

"Hon, I think you're investment partner has arrived to meet you."

Helena said as gently as she could. Leon spun around and took notice of Vixayla as she held out her hand to him. Leon without question kissed her hand as he lightly bowed his head. She seemed honored, almost too pleased in Helena's eyes as Vixayla sized up Leon taking a moment to admire him from the looks of things.

"It's nice to finally meet you Jackson,"

Vixayla took a moment to make eye contact with Helena for two reasons. One, psychological dominance, and two to show that she cared for both Leon and Helena despite the fact she seemed more interested in Leon than anything. Hell, from the look in her cat like eyes Helena could have sworn infatuation already had taken place.

"Both of you I should say. I'm thrilled you could make it to the party so we could become further acquainted. I love getting to know new business partners."

"The pleasure is ours."

Leon stated happily, as he kept his composure and seriousness intact.

"Did you get everything that was requested of me?"

"Yes, I just got your loan for the research to assist in the vaccine you are trying to conjure. I can assure you my colleagues at Tricell have taken a huge interest in your research. On behalf of the company, I have to say I'm most impressed that you would seek me out amongst the other candidates to assist you with your medical experiments. It's not easy being a geneticist from one professional to another."

"You can say that again. That is what I admired about you when we first met, you weren't afraid to trust new blood. I can't tell you enough how hard it has been to find someone such as yourself who believes in my findings. Aside from my wife, you've been our first promoter."

"Ah yes, well the pleasure is mine. The way I see things unlike my other colleagues out in the business world I'd rather get acquainted with the newcomers, they have rather creative minds compared to the old timers. Besides, I offer better business deals as time goes on and the relationship blossoms."

"You make it sound as if we will continue this long after the party."

Leon said in a sly tone, making Vixayla grin widely, enjoying the attention she was receiving from him. Helena could detect the seducing tone in Vixayla's voice and deep inside she wanted to lurch out and strangle the woman. She knew though that despite having to see this random woman flirting right in front of her with Leon, this was a good advantage. Helena knew without a shadow of a doubt if Leon could even just lead her on for a moment and get the woman wrapped around his finger, they'd have an easier time to get to Crane.

"Well, if you happen to be impressed with the purchase from earlier on I could potentially sweeten the deal the next time you happen to look for better quality of specimens."

Vixayla stated in a flattering whisper as Leon nodded, feeling thrilled to hear the news. Basically from what he could gather their coding was going to plan. He was roughly able to translate Vixayla's lie and deduced she already had successfully begun the Hunter program. Deep down he felt a bit intimidated by the black haired woman who seemed to be inching closer to him by the second. He could only imagine how Helena must have felt having to watch from the sidelines and basically not having the ability to stop this. Given the chance, Leon would have turned Ms Onslaught loose in a heartbeat if he didn't have to cozy up to the sultry woman before him. Vixayla looked over at Helena and lightly smirked a bit as she got closer to the pair.

"I heard that you are most pleased with the rarities. You're husband spoke of nothing else and how you admired the unusual specimens."

Helena nodded, key on playing along.

"Yes, and I do hope the purchase is just as marvelous as you so claim it to be."

"I assure you I only offer best quality."

"I'll believe it when I see it."

Vixayla's right eye brow flinched a little bit. Helena slyly smirked causing a quick flush of agitation to hit the woman but she quickly brushed it off for she seemed accustomed to this.

"You're wife has quite a spirit lurking around in there."

"You can say that again. Sometimes she doesn't know when to stop."

"Ah yes, well I better leave you two at peace. You probably have much to discuss and many others to meet."

Before she had a chance to leave, Leon gently took her arm and in a brief moment lightly massaged her wrist as she almost seemed to melt.

"I was hoping that maybe I could make another purchase at another moment in time, at your discretion of course."

Vixayla nodded enthusiastically as she bowed her head and left. Helena glanced up at Leon as they trailed the seducing woman with their eyes cautiously.

"What did you do that for?"

"Just watch, if it worked she'll be coming back here."

Helena smirked a bit as she remembered capturing the touch Leon had given to Vixayla with her eyes. He had on the occasion used that on Helena before, actually a few times before they got together and every time Leon would do it, there would be no way she could resist not going back to him at some point even if she was fuming towards him.

"She's very strong willed however."

Leon gently nipped at her neck causing her to jump a little.

"So are you."

Helena lightly hit him in the shoulder as they took notice of how Vixayla froze in place for a moment. A look of contemplation seemed to hit her face as she gently massaged her chin. In a moment of marvel, she spun back around and made eye contact with the pair and walked back over. Leon looked deeply at her eyes trying to get her riled in once more.

"I was just thinking if it's alright with the Mrs. of course if I could possibly, steal you away momentarily. I think there are some other investors who would love to hear about your company and the research you are trying to conduct. If you have me there I am sure they will gladly welcome you and will offer up some to die for deals."

Leon shrugged as he went over to Helena and pecked her on the cheek.

"I'll be back soon."

"Alright, call me over if you need anything."

Leon nodded and he traveled with Vixayla over across the large room, leaving Helena to herself. She somewhat felt nervous about letting Leon take off alone, but given the circumstances and the role she was suppose to play if she butted in too much it could set off some people or not give Leon the chance to get close enough to the terrorists in order to strike deals. Her eyes traveled wearily as she could see Vixayla and him traveling to a large table where a group of five men were at. Leon gently shook their hands and took a seat that was offered to him. Helena cocked an eye brow and smiled a bit, amused that Leon was pretty good at being a socialite for her already had the guys cracking up and ordering some expensive drinks. She knew now he had the upper hand in this and in this moment she took the time to glance around, trying to find something to preoccupy herself for the time being.

Helena traveled over to a spare table but then she felt something in her lower back. It was like a brief kick from a child hit her bones and she found herself almost kneeling onto the ground as she heaved a bit. Some people looked on at her with baffled expressions, but then she felt an arm that gently wrapped itself around her waist as Helena could feel her body being lifted. She panted a little bit as she made eye contact with the man who looked at her worriedly.

"Are you alright there miss?"

He had greenish gray eyes and was slightly balding in places. Judging from his looks like looked like he was approaching his late forties or early fifties. He smiled at Helena as he gently took her hand into his own and made sure she was propped up alright after her brief spell.

"Thank you, I'm sure I'll be fine."

He nodded at her as he let go of Helena's hand and crossed his arms momentarily, seemingly puzzled by Helena.

"I'm usually one for knowing people. I don't think I ever seen such a beautiful face around here at one of these parties. What is your name?"

Helena felt rather good about the compliment as she returned a nod and smile to the man.

"Rosalie McDougal. I'm here with my husband Jackson McDougal. He owns McDougal industries after inheriting the business from his father and he's come here to get better acquainted with some investors."

The old man let out a chuckle as he grinned as he and Helena briefly shook hands. He seemed inviting and gentle in her eyes.

"That sounds marvelous. I will have to meet with him at some point during the party. You seem very supportive of your husband. Instead of talking about yourself like most of the women here, you went straight for your man. I like that quality in a woman, not selfish."

Helena didn't know how to feel about what was just said. It sounded like a compliment, but deep inside her inner female was raging out feeling it was borderline sexism. She kept her composure however and managed to keep her feelings intact as she began conversing more.

"I never got your name."

"Oh yes,"

He said but not before adjusting his bow tie a little bit.

"I am Crane, Wesley Crane."

Helena's eyes widened up a bit and she felt her body freeze. Her mind raced as she glanced up and down at him in brief seconds. How could this man be him? He seemed rather polite but then again she knew better than to trust him fully. Not only was she in shock because of his attitude, but also due to the fact she already made contact with the man. So much for jumping through loops she thought to herself as Crane waved a hand in front of her face.

"Oh sweet heart you look like a dear in the head lights."

He said with a brief laugh and smile, capturing Helena's upmost attention as she cleared her throat.

"I'm sorry, it's just I've heard so much about you from my husband. He's quite an admirer of the charity work you've done over the years; to meet you in the flesh is just an honor."

Helena could see him beam with admiration as his posture seemed to be more reaffirmed. He nodded as if agreeing with Helena's statement. Not only after he caught the eye sight of his wife who was sitting in the upper loft area of the main hall, basically where all the mightiest of the rich got to roost. She smiled and waved as Helena looked onward, seeing the love the two of them had for another as Crane's eyes focused back to Helena.

"Since you are lonely for the time being it would be an honor if you would join the company of my wife. She likes to get acquainted with new folks around here and I'm sure the two of you will both get along famously."

Helena felt humbled as she heard his words, and also jubilant. She couldn't believe how she already managed to get into the inner workings of Crane and welcomed so quickly into the small group. However, as she glanced back to where the man's wife was at she took notice that mostly women accompanied the small group she was hosting. Helena could see Crane's eyes drift looking around for Leon it seemed, interested in hearing about his business from what Helena had proclaimed. Sure, she probably wouldn't get to hear much about the B.O.W business Crane would most likely discuss with Leon, but Helena found this much more pleasing and quite frankly more important. To know of a man and the way he carries himself in work is one thing, but getting acquainted with the family and knowing all the intimate details of that said person would be just as powerful of a tool to be used against Crane in the future.

"I'd be thrilled to meet your wife."

Helena said in a confident voice as Crane bowed to her respectfully, not before long they were arm in arm with each other. Crane led Helena up the large porcelain like stairs and even took a moment or two to give a compliment about how radiant she looked this night. Helena was earning many looks of appeasement as she walked past many of the tables where the aristocratic like high class flocked. Careless whispers filled the upper level as they contemplated about what Helena was doing up there, and quite a few seemed rather curious about the mysterious woman who was beside Crane. Her ears drowned out the noise however as she came into contact with Mrs. Crane. She looked roughly the same age as Wesley. Bright red lip stick caked her mouth and small gold like strands of eye liner circled around her sockets. She smiled respectfully to Helena as she took her hand into hers, leading her to the table and offering a seat right by her side.

"Come on and sit down, sit down! You look rather hungry."

The woman said enthusiastically as Helena quickly found herself a place right next to Crane's wife. As soon as she plopped into the seat, Helena took notice Crane was already gone. A part of her grew alarmed by this as she glanced around the entirety of the party and he was nowhere to be seen.

"Hon, is there something troubling you?"

"Oh no, I'm sorry. I just never been to a huge party like this before so I am a bit side tracked. I don't mean to offend."

"Don't sweat it. I remember my first one. I threw up over five times just thinking about the crowds, now all of this is cake walk. I noticed you and you're husband from afar, you're quite a unique pair. I'm sure my Wesley would love to meet up with him once the main event dies down. Excuse me, I'm rambling! My name is Edmona."

Helena and Edmona both exchanged their hands as they shook each other.

"Rosalie McDougal."

Edmona cocked an eye brow, causing Helena to become a little bit intimidated.

"Are you with the Wisconsin McDougal family by chance?"

"No, we are actually from the French region."

"Oh how interesting. You don't appear to have the accent, were you born here?"

Helena found herself looking up at one of the waiters as a glass of wine was introduced before her. Helena's words seem to grow distant as she looked at the bitter beverage and a part of her grew sick from just the mere sight of it. She loved wine, and normally had this been any other occasion she would have gladly have a glass and then some but given how terrible and nervous she had been feeling now was not the time.

"Both Jackson, my husband, and I were born in the US. About the time he was five his parents moved to France and took their business over there. I went to college in France after my folks passed away and we happened to meet and then the rest as they say is history."

Edmona seemed really intrigued and uplifted hearing that small bit of Helena's fake back story. Eventually as time went on, the conversations grew more. Edmona introduced Helena to practically almost every single woman attending the Crane event. Helena found herself overwhelmed but she managed to keep up with everything. The majority of the conversations between the women were about family, business, or their husbands and goals. Helena didn't want to jump to any conclusions, but it seemed whenever the husbands were brought up into the talk they all seemed to be competing with one another as if trying to gloat that their significant other could do better. Even when they were being nice to one another, Helena could detect the hostility in their body language when they started approaching dangerous waters. When it came to Edmona though when she would rant about Wesley, everyone never once said anything back to her. Based on all the interactions alone, she was in every sense a queen bee. She not once received any negative compliment or was even subtly bad mouthed. Though she was quite bubbly and energetic throughout the party time, Helena could detect that deep down she was like a lioness and kept herself grounded. Some of the time, it seemed like she had been nervous because of something. Most of the women left Edmona's side eventually, having to go find their men and see what was going on, leaving only Helena and a few others by the queen bee.

"So Rosalie since we are on the topic of family do you and Jackson have any children?"

Helena shook her head as she took notice of Leon and the group of men he was with leave the table and began to walk outside onto the balcony area. She was delighted to see that Vixayla had kept her distance from him; though she knew Leon wouldn't do anything with that woman she hated just seeing her in Leon's presence. If her anger was like an electrical current, everyone in the room would be shocked.

"No, we don't have any. With business and everything, it's somewhat hard for Jackson and I to find the time to contemplate having children. What about you Edmona?"

Edmona smiled as she pat Helena's leg tenderly before answering.

"I have three sons: one is Patrick the eldest, two is Falkner the mid one and the final one is Sven. Patrick and Falkner run their own business together in Russia. Sven, well he is…"

She took a light sip of the wine before her as she looked down upon the table.

"He's in school earning modest grades but the silly thing has it in his idea that he wants to be a musician. As much as my husband and I adore the arts I don't think it's going to be working out especially with Wesley wanting Sven to inherit the company later on."

"How old is he? Your son?"

"He's about eight, takes after his uncle. God rest his soul."

Helena couldn't help but feel pity for the child. She could also relate that kids frustration to Leon when he told his own father he was going to get into art. Helena felt flabbergasted knowing that Crane and Edmona were basically training the kid to become a bioterrorist. She shook her head lightly, making sure Edmona wouldn't notice as the woman began to gossip with the other girls at the table. Helena asked where the bathroom was at. Edmona graciously pointed out the area to her, and demanded she return once things were settled. Helena was rather shocked the old woman enjoyed her company, and she couldn't help but find herself smirk knowing she was going to gain an upper hand in this little game.

As Helena walked past the crowd of people there was something that caught her eye. Amongst the majority of the women attending this party, she had never once seen any of them wear red. As Helena's head turned she took notice of the long strand of crimson before her eyes as the fabric transcended down the spy's legs. Helena couldn't help but mutter Ada's name under her breath as her nerves tensed, wanting to know exactly what the woman was doing at Crane's party. Helena cautiously drifted in and out of the current of people as she made her way towards the spy; her brown eyes were deadlocked onto her as Ada began to slip off. Eventually, they both bumped into one another as Ada tried making her way through a large door nearby. Ada and Helena fell silent as the two women sized each other up. Ada's mouth curved into a smile as she glanced at Helena's dress.

"You look just as radiant as you did at the wedding. I'm flattered to see you wearing my old butterfly hair clip. It's priceless on you."

"What exactly are you doing here?"

Ada could detect unsettled tone of Helena's voice as Ada motioned for her to step into the room. It was a small quiet area with only a handful of people minding their business, a perfect opportunity to strike up a conversation.

"Don't get the wrong thought dancing and twirling in your head Ms. Kennedy. I'm not here to play games with neither you nor Leon."

"That's what you said during Operation Jarvis, then look at what happened."

"It was just an innocent kiss."

"You're a selfish bitch."

Helena seethed under her teeth as the words fell out of her mouth. Ada's smile returned to a more serious gesture.

"You seem rather tense this evening."

Helena didn't say anything back but only continued to glare dangerously at the mysterious woman. Ada circled around her then looked around the room as Helena got ready to repeat herself.

"Answer me, what are you doing here? If you're here and you've seen me like this you are most likely aware Leon and I are undercover. If you do anything to jeopardize our mission you won't escape unharmed from me."

Ada sighed; a brief chuckle escaped her lips.

"I'm being honest with you when I say this; I'm here on my own accord. Do you really think you and Leon are the only pair who have a score to settle with Crane?"

Helena began to connect the dots as she felt the butterfly pendent. Her eyes grew wide ever so slightly as Ada's smile returned fully.

"You put something on the clip so you could hear about the mission."

"Correct."

"Did you know anything about the attack at the government facility? Did you know about Markus's brother?"

Ada crossed her arms as her ears radiated with Helena's questions. She looked up to the ceiling for a brief moment as she stared at Helena in the eye, which by now looked fearful.

"I somewhat did. I didn't think the idiot would have it in him to pull off that stunt which I heard about from some associates. My apologies to you, I happen to come across some news you were hurt."

"Don't try to pretend to be sympathetic now; it's not in your character."

Helena stated firmly as Ada shook her head with a bow and smile.

"I'll take that as a compliment. If you'll excuse me I need to lie low for the time being,"

"Wait, you didn't answer my question. Why are you here for Crane?"

Ada, just before she was getting ready to prop open the door to the main party area her head bowed. From Helena's point of view it looked almost as if she was hopeless, something Helena had never once witnessed in the female agents demeanor.

"He took something from me, something very precious. That is all you need to know."

With that she departed the room in a swift motion as Helena stood there in silence trying to figure out what it was Ada was after. She could hear the music from the other side of the wall, and her skin shook. From the way Ada sounded before taking off it was personal, and deep down Helena knew there was going to be something chaotic if Ada was around. Helena gathered her thoughts and ventured around the mansion like building to find the bathroom for her nerves were getting the best of her character, and she could feel the sickness return to haunt her.


	14. Chapter 14: Mindeater

**My my it is good to be back!**

**I graduated from community college, get the summer off and now its back to writing. Guys, seriously thank you very much for understanding how hard these last few months have been. Words cannot express how saddened I have felt not able to continue on with the story like I wished, and getting messages and support saying this missed this and that I should continue. Now that things in my life have balanced out I'm gonna finish this baby up! Until I get back in the swing of things, and familiarize myself with the plot again I'm gonna be posting one chapter a week until I feel one hundred percent confident about whipping them out like I use to.**

**For those of you who have been sticking with me since the beginning, thank you so much and for those of you new to this, welcome to the club! Enjoy your stay and please enjoy the hell out of this chapter!**

Hours went by and the party grew in substantial size. Helena managed to pull herself together after being sick and returned to Edmona's group where she was graciously praised and welcomed back. Even some of the women went out of their way to ask if Helena was doing alright and if she needed any meds. She kindly accepted a few aspirin to take the pain from her stomach off as she glanced around, seeing that Leon was still over in the small group conversing with Vixayla and Crane. The two men then got up and exchanged a strong handshake and Helena couldn't help but smile a bit. Leon worked his magic on them alright.

She couldn't help but keep an eye peeled for Ada especially after the encounter they had. Her thought danced inside her mind pondering what it was the woman was after this time and whether or not she would put Leon and the mission at hand in jeopardy. Painful memories of Operation Jarvis surfaced for her once more, but only for the moment as she grew distracted by more talking from Edmona and the rest of her posse. This continued long out through the night and as it started to approach three in the morning, Helena could feel her legs wanting to shatter. She hadn't ever been this active with people for this long of time and grew exhausted. The one thing she managed to get out of this was Edmona's weakness was her children for that were the only thing she talked of. As much as it would be a sour move on her part, Helena knew that if Leon's cover and hers were ever broken she might have to use the kid, Sven, as a bargaining chip. That alone made her insides swell up as she came to terms with the fact.

After Crane had given a speech about charity and the wonders of the human race, Leon finally caught up to Helena and he motioned it was time for them to get going. Helena couldn't have been more happier to hear that coming from him as they exited out of the giant room and headed outside, waiting for their limo to return. They were both silent during the wait as the limo finally pulled up. Leon opened up the door and allowed Helena to get inside, but not before he could enter a man was running up to them leaving Helena's eyes widened with shock somewhat as the man gently tugged at Leon's shoulder.

"Excuse me?"

Leon remarked, startled somewhat himself as the young man caught his breath holding out an envelope.

"Mr. Crane wishes for you to attend the next benefit along with your wife of course. He also wishes for you to join up with an audience alongside Ms. Gionne. Your wife has also been invited to join Mrs. Crane as well. Inside is a pass to the next party as well as personal instruction from Mr. Crane. Enjoy your evening."

The young man gave a light bow as Leon took the envelope and nodded at the man before entering the car alongside Helena. He handed the envelope to her as she opened it and studied the invitation carefully along with the personal note.

"Seems to me you are already cutting deals with the man?"

Helena gave a light smile, reading over how Crane was most impressed with an offer that Leon had given to him. Leon smirked a bit and looked over at Helena, seeing that she looked tired.

"I made him an offer he couldn't refuse."

Helena cocked an eyebrow looking over at him as she placed the invitation and note back inside of the envelope.

"What kind of offer? And how did you get him to talk to you right off the get go?"

Leon adjusted his posture and leaned a bit into the seat as he gave his full focus to Helena.

"Well, apparently you bumped into him and pointed him in my direction. We stroke up a conversation about businesses and then one thing led to another. Vixayla even said some positive remarks about me, keeping Crane interested once he heard that I was good at paying off my dues. He talked about some of his partnerships with a B.O.W. branch somewhere in Europe where we evidently 'live' at and then he brought up Bora Bora and the compound he had there which houses a lot of exotic B.O.W's. I told him we were looking for more investment deals in the tropics because of how discreet it has been and he's offering up a patch of land for us to buy to start our own B.O.W compound."

Helena's eyes widened as she took in the news.

"That was pretty fast, don't you think?"

"What makes you say that?"

Helena couldn't help but feel a little bit worried as she repeated some of the news inside her head. Sure, it was great that Leon and the man already established a good partnership and a guarantee pass into the next party, but there was something tugging at her instincts right now. That too much good was happening ever so quickly. That Crane already put too much into Leon right now.

"I thought—and from what Markus had said about him according to you, Crane wasn't one that easily trusted people let alone allow new blood into the group so willingly. Do you think that he's possibly toying with us, that someone tipped him off and he's just playing along?"

Leon turned his attention inward and began thinking of Helena's questions and statement. He even had to admit a part of himself was beginning to wonder the same thing. Before he had taken off, Markus did mention something along the lines of that, that Crane was not a man easily fooled nor was he one to welcome anyone new. Then again Markus did state it had been years since he had last talked to his godfather, perhaps he had changed over the years. Who really knew what the man was like at this point? Leon pushed this onto the back burner of his mind however, looking at the accomplishment as it was for the night. What mattered right now was that Helena and him were in the club practically, and they already had their foot in the door. His eyes glazed over at her, contemplative as she looked up at his blue orbs with concern lurking in her expression.

"I think we need to take what happened tonight with a grain of salt, Lena. I mean sure, his approach has been a bit quick but what is important right now is we got him eating out of our hands. It's only a matter of time before we get access to Bora Bora and catch him red handed with all of this mess."

Even though he sounded so confident in himself, the look on her face suggested otherwise. It didn't do much to bring her comfort as he could tell.

"Lena, did something happen at the party?"

Helena could find herself sighing a bit, thinking about the encounter she had with Ada. Shaking her head, she figured she would give him a piece of what happened. Besides, she had her own questions for him in regards to the woman.

"Ada was at the party. I bumped into her while I was looking for the bathroom. She said she had some beef with Crane or something along the lines. I can't really remember much. Leon, you didn't tell her about the mission did you? On the butterfly hair clip she put a tracking device on it so she could hear into conversations."

The way she said it almost sounded as if he had stung her. He shook his head rapidly, his expression getting serious as he tried to find the words.

"No, I haven't even talked to her since the Jarvis assignment. There is no way she would have known anything from me. Besides you just told me right now she had been tracking our conversations. Why would you assume I would tell her about this mission, especially since it's so dangerous for me and you?"

Helena shrugged and shook her head.

"I'm sorry; I just thought that maybe you might have told her given her circumstances."

Leon shook his head.

"No, I would never do that. I don't know what she's up to, but her business is her own. We won't get into it and leave it at that."

He gripped her hand tightly, the two of them remaining silent the rest of the drive to the hotel they were staying at. Each one feeling like they had weight in their throats, that there was more trouble coming for them than what they had wanted.

When they got back to the hotel, Helena went to the bathroom to change while Leon waited on the bed, sitting on the edge of it. His palms resting on his face as he took in a breath. He was worried about this. Especially once he had heard from Helena that Ada had been after Crane as well. It was strange to be hearing that, that the three of them shared a common enemy. Leon then assumed perhaps Ada had problems with the man when she use to work for the Family. That had to be it, otherwise why would she wire tap the hair clip? But then again, as he started to think harder on the issue he reached another unsettling outcome. Maybe because of what happened during the Jarvis mission and after their spat perhaps she might be in league with Crane but pulling something as a revenge shot. It could also very well explain why Crane was being so open to the offers Leon had laid out on the table for the man, because perhaps Ada had been listening in on the mission and to work her way up the ranks to earn Crane's trust, told him of the plans Leon and Helena had to get the man arrested.

The very thought was unsettling to him as he wiped some sweat from his forehead, over thinking every possible situation. His own thoughts working against his judgment as he contemplated what Ada's involvement was going to be. In this moment he had wished he could converse with her, ask her what she was up to. Not knowing what she was planning scared him, and not knowing her motives made him weak in the knees. If there was one thing he wished he could have had back from their relationship, it would be her telling him the truth about what was going on or at least filing him in on her personal side missions and the like. He could now see why he had feared her before they had got together, and it just reaffirmed how unpredictable she was and how dangerous she could be.

He felt himself collapsing onto the bed, his head hitting the pillow behind him with a soft thud as she closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. Tilting his head to the side, he could hear Helena coughing vividly in the bathroom. He shot up from his side his of the bed and made his way over, knocking on the door for a brief second before allowing himself inside.

"Lena? Are you alright?"

He said gently, peeking through the door as he saw blood trailing down her lips. His eyes were frozen in fear as he opened up the door all the way and rushed down to her. Getting on his knees and holding her up he pat the side of her face taking her temperature.

"What's wrong with you? What's going on?"

Helena shook her head, she had thrown up but this time there was blood intermingled with the vomit. Leon could see that in the toilet as he gave a brief look of disgust, not meaning to because he didn't want to seem rude but this scared him greatly. Stroking little pieces of hair from her face he held her still as she coughed, small droplets of blood making their way onto his dress shirt he was wearing as she tried to talk.

"L-Leon I'm going to be fine I'm just a little sick."

He shook his head.

"No, you're beyond sick. You're hitting a fever right now too."

He felt her forehead and as quickly as she started feeling sick she was better. She pushed herself up, getting out of his grasp as she pant a bit, motioning for him to give her a towel or something. He obliged, getting up real quick and handing her one from the cupboard nearby. Kneeling down to her level once again the concern on his features was great. Helena wiped the blood from her lips as she swallowed hard, trying not to look Leon right in the eye.

"Lena...is this a side effect of that serum or is this a new thing?"

Helena shook her head, still trying to keep herself together as she leaned up and flushed the toilet.

"Yeah, it's just another side effect."

She remarked, still seeing that none of this was flying by Leon. She knew he was probably thinking there was more to it, which there was. But given the stress he was already feeling right now especially bringing up Ada; she didn't want to add on more to it. Too many burdens and too many cards were stacked on them right now. Had she place her next card into the deck, the tower of them would collapse and leave them both broken. Especially Leon. She couldn't put this on him right now, not when he was already worrying about her every second on this godforsaken mission. Some part of her now started to regret sneaking onto the plane and coming with him.

Her thoughts were broken as he rested a hand on her shoulder, looking at her eyes tenderly and planting a kiss on her forehead. Glancing back he lightly shook his head.

"Hon, if there is more you're not telling me now is the time…I can't get you right back on a plane right now but if I have to I'll abort the mission and take you home. We can catch Crane another time. I'm really concerned for your health. I know these are just 'side effects' but you're scaring me."

Brushing more strands of hair from her face, and taking out the butterfly hair clip from her hair, he somewhat chucked the thing off to the side, pulling her close to him and embracing her tightly.

"I know we've been having problems…trust issues and all with Ada and the mission being stressful. But I want you to know right here and now my number one priority is you. You come first, always."

Helena nodded a bit into his shoulder, resting her chin there for a bit as she stroked the back of his neck somewhat. Closing her eyes and taking in his words.

"Leon, nothing else is wrong. It's just side effects and we can't abort the mission. There is already too much at stake right now."

She was going to take up his offer on going home, but then when she thought back to Ada she had to get rid of that thought completely. While in the limo, Helena had been drawing similar conclusions as Leon had. That Ada might have been in league with Crane and if they were to abort the mission and leave right now, it didn't guarantee that Crane would come looking for them especially if it was true and their assumptions were right that Ada was up to something. She could easily give the names to the man and their lives would be ruined once more. They would have to go on the run again, go into hiding and possibly not survive this round. If the remnants of the Family were to find out about Helena being alive, they would stop at nothing to get her. If they found out about her and Leon's relationship, there is no way they would stop themselves from also tracking and butchering him. No, she couldn't risk that and couldn't risk Leon's life on this matter. She would have to suck up her guts and keep playing up this dangerous act. Even if it jeopardized her in more ways than one.

Pulling away from him, she only offered a smile hiding the real pain that lurked inside of herself. The real truth of what she was dealing with cascaded off to the side as she offered a sincere look.

"You worry too much. Leon I can handle this. Besides it's already too late in the game. We can't turn around from this and back down. Crane has to be stopped; all of those people in the group have to be brought to justice no matter the cost."

He gently shook his head though, offering a light smile still a hint of sadness in those eyes of his.

"If it's at the cost of you though, I'm not going to go through with it."

"Leon—"

"No buts, none of that. If at the next party things get out of whack or if you start getting sick bad like this I'm going to get you out of there. One way or another. We'll deal with the consequences of that decision later on."

She let out a breath sigh, coughing up a little bit more as she motioned for him to help her up. He swiftly moved out of the way and pulled her up to her feet, leading her to the bed room and allowing her to sit down on the edge of the bed for a moment as he pulled the covers up. He thought maybe he was overreacting now about her condition, that maybe she was feeling the side effects badly because it was so late at night and she hadn't received any sleep. Helena crawled over to her side and gently lied down as he tucked her in then walked over to the other side, pulling off his shirt as he crawled into bed with her, not caring about anything else at the moment. He pulled her close to him, trying to bring some sort of comfort not just for her sake but for his own. His mind had been so preoccupied with the mission at hand and the act he had to pull off that he now stopped to think about things. He really didn't know what he would do if he lost Helena to a mission so devious it made him sick. He still had his doubts as well about her telling him and reassuring that she was alright.

This whole mission, this whole pit that the two of them were stuck in finally began to hit him hard in the head. He should have gotten her off the plane when he had the chance, should have made sure she wouldn't attempt to sneak on this mission, should have said things differently. Should have never asked Hunnigan to take Helena off the mission in the first place but instead should have talked to her about it. Maybe, had he not act so overprotective, she would be at home right now getting better and getting proper treatment for her side effects. That was the protective side of him talking, but as he looked to the other portion of his mind they were partners through and through. He knew now more than ever after this night he wouldn't have been able to pull off half of this without her being there, though they didn't get to interact much together at the event she gave him that extra boost of confidence to deal with those people.

He was so lost in thought that he didn't even realize he had gone to sleep. His worries drowning away amongst his dreams. Helena on the other hand was still wide awake, still scared as she felt a pang jab in her stomach. Placing her hand near it she rubbed the spot tenderly trying to keep herself calm. The next event was going to be in a week, and starting now she had to be ready for whatever was to come, no matter how small.


	15. Chapter 15: Mental

**Once again I know this chapter and the one next are terribly late. I found myself having to rewrite them over and over because in the end my writing was lacking and I couldn't feel the characters for a while. Sometimes we get those moments where we just don't know what the heck we are doing, and sadly I had one of those accompanied by a short writers block. Sorry for the disappointment and getting your hopes up I would have this out a lot sooner. I still very much appreciate your feedback so thank you everyone who has still taken the time to leave something. Enjoy.**

The week seemed to go by pretty quick as they got prepped for the lower Manhattan party. Leon and Helena had managed to fill in Chris and the SURGE team in on what the plan was thus far getting into the inner circle of Crane's. Everything seemed to be ahead of schedule. Also they reported to Hunnigan on their status. Things couldn't have been going much smoother than they were. Leon had even managed to make some more B.O.W. bargains and offers towards other members of the group he had gotten acquainted with during the previous education benefit Crane hosted. Helena and him were both surprised that at the event over three hundred of the thousand guests that attended happened to be top wanted bioterrorists wanted in other countries across the globe. They had really hit a treasure trove, and entered into a dangerous snake pit full of countless vipers waiting to strike. However despite the danger they were still in the green zone, everyone didn't suspect them one bit.

The Manhattan event went okay for the most part. Both Leon and Helena did a good job presenting their roles. The bargaining deals they had on B.O.W's was very astonishing, almost, once again, too good to be true. Leon didn't want to admit it but now there was a part of him screaming something was up. He even found himself distancing from herd several times to scour around. Ever since he found out Ada had been tailing Crane alongside him and Helena, he was looking out for her. Not that he really wanted to see her, but should he have a chance encounter he was going to demand what she was doing here, and get her to spill her side of things. He had to know what was lurking in the shadows of this mission, even if it was something he didn't want to hear.

Despite making huge progress with Crane and co, Vixayla seemed to be a little bit more edgier than usual around the two. Several times she tried to lead Leon away from Helena, causing the woman to get infuriated to the point where eventually, Helena somewhat snapped after getting some alone time with her after talking once more to Edmona. Though she knew Leon wouldn't try anything with the woman, she had to get her point across to back off not only was this a perfect means to put the heiress in her place, but it gave Helena a chance to get something of great importance. Earlier on she spotted a little blue book on Vixayla's person in which she would jot down notes. Something urged Helena to corner her off somehow and retrieve it, she had managed, after getting her words across to the woman, to trip her causing the book to slide underneath a table nearby. Vixayla didn't even notice, and was more preoccupied with the situation that was occurring between Helena and herself. The hatred and seething anger rising from the two women could be felt from miles, to the point where Leon could see what was happening and managed to get Helena out of the mess before it got out of hand. He had worried about her, and about her actions for a long while at the party. It was only after Helena went back and retrieved the book did Leon fully see that she had implemented a plan.

While the two agents managed to get some alone time together at the party, it turned out the book carried some rather important information. Certain dates and such were crossed out, ironically they happened to match up with the times Markus claimed he was contacted before The Family had planned on having the man killed. Three prominent dates were circled for a future date, ironically right after the final party was to be completed. The two had wondered what significance they had held, but since there was no notes logged in on that section of the book, no conclusions could be brought yet. The other pages were filled with notes. Mostly of purchases, amounts of money, and future investments. Helena then took several photos of the pages that looked important with her phone, then upon Leon's suggestion put the book back where it dropped just in case Vixayla had recalled losing the thing and decided to go looking for it.

The party wined down once more and soon the two agents found themselves back in the hotel room, taking off their shoes and getting into more regular clothing. Leon stretched his arms as he rummaged through the lap top real quick, making some last minute deals and talking with Jake through a private messaging chat room asking how Sherry and him were handling things at the McDougal residence. The B.O.W's that had already been sent there after his purchase had been disposed of, and no one had gone around snooping to find out anything about the people who were 'suppose' to live there. It was a huge relief for Leon to hear, considering many of the men within Crane's circle were quite curious to know about Helena's and his residence. Even some of them kept on prying to know when Leon himself was going to host an event much like Crane's. He found out real quickly that it was common courtesy for 'new money' to host parties at their own manor especially after making their first high class deals. One man even told him it was bad luck not to. He couldn't help but remember how his spine shivered at that statement, and how the man looked him in the eye so humbly but also so cold.

He rubbed his forehead, feeling some bitter beads of sweat dripping down as he looked over and could see Helena coming out of the bathroom. She had been doing much better since the first party, even starting to look healthier much to his happiness. He gave her a light smile as she came over to his side, looking at the chat him and Jake were having before sitting down next to him.

"Glad everything is going good for Sherry and him."

Leon gave a light nod and looked back to the screen, typing to Jake that he should report to Chris later about the Hunters they had disposed of. He then focused his attention back to Helena, shutting the laptop down and pulling her into a long hug, kissing the top of her forehead.

"You know what makes me more glad than that?"

Helena shook her head, giving a light smirk as she looked up at him.

"No, what would that be?"

"That you're here with me still in one piece. We have one more party, hopefully we end up going to Bora Bora and when all this mess is taken care of, I'm gonna take me and you on a much needed vacation. I don't care if we haven't been back on the job for some time. I'm going to make it happen."

Helena's eyes widened up a bit as she gave a big grin, her finger tips gently brushing Leon's slicked hair up a little bit, trying to get it to its normal appearance as she let out a minor laugh.

"Just what did you have in mind?"

Leon gave a shrug and his lips formed into a bigger smile.

"Maybe back to Italy. Where we once lived. I kind of miss the place lately."

Helena gave a light nod, she too had been thinking of the more peaceful times they had shared there. Though she was a part time cop over there and Leon was working with the European agency branch, until the Jarvis mission in which she was thrust back into the hidden world of the government. Helena's thoughts drifted a bit as Leon laid against the head of the bed, wrapping his arms around Helena tightly as she rested herself on his chest. His finger tips lightly stroking down the locks of her hair as he kissed her forehead again.

"What do you say Lena?"

He whispered against her hair as she adjusted and looked back up at him. She gave a light nod leaning up and rubbing her nose against his as he let out a light chuckle.

"That sounds great to me."

"Glad it is-"

He cut himself off as he kissed her lightly, breaking apart to look back up at her beautiful eyes as she leaned away from him somewhat. Her smile kind of faded into a frown as he kissed her again and started nipping at her neck. She knew where this was heading and as much as she craved this she had to say speak up.

"Leon,"

He gently pulled back looking at her with concern, hearing the sadness in her voice as he brushed her hair back.

"What's wrong?"

Helena licked her lips somewhat as she looked down and away from him momentarily. Trying to collect her thoughts and words as she looked him in the eye. Though she hadn't been as sick, she could still feel her body somewhat being eaten alive. It was almost unexplainable, too difficult to put into words that any regular person would be able to understand. She bit her lip somewhat as she could tell Leon was waiting patiently for an answer to come out from her mouth.

"I just need-"

"Yeah?"

The worry in his voice lingered as Helena let out a light sigh, rubbing the back of her neck and smiling up at him.

"I need a bath. I'm really sweaty from earlier, you know being around the huge crowd and all."

Much to his relief Leon gave a light nod and a smile, leaning up from the head of the bed.

"Alright,"

He paused for a moment kissing the side of her cheek as he motioned for her to get going.

"Go on ahead and take one. I won't stop you."

Helena nodded, and got up from the bed and headed to the bathroom. The two exchanging smiles at each other as Leon lied back down, his hands going to the back of his head as he stared at the ceiling. There was something tugging at the back of his mind. He was still worried about Helena ever since she had that incident in the bathroom from the first party, especially when she threw up a little bit of blood. As his fingers ran through his hair he closed his eyes thinking that he needed to confront her about the whole thing, get the real truth about her sickness out in the open. He played it dumb, believing her every time she said she was okay when he knew full well something else was being downplayed. However since he was patient and this was her own struggle, he didn't want to pressure her into telling him anything yet. But now more than ever it was growing on him, like an infectious tumor slowly spreading. If he didn't figure it out soon he knew full well it might end up interfering with the mission at large.

"I haven't seen you this tired in quite some time..."

A light voice hit his eardrums as Leon's eyes shot open wide. He jumped from the bed, assuming an attacking pose before his eyes deadlocked on those familiar orbs. His breathing hitched a bit as the woman walked up from the shadows of the room, her arms crossed and poised as she was merely a few feet from him. A mixture of a glare and a look of baffled confusion crossed his handsome features as he glanced up and down at the woman.

"Ada..."

The woman paced around the room, keeping her eyes focused on Leon every once in a while. Her finger tips lightly tracing the edge of the bed as she approached it before leaning up against the wall towards the bathroom, she closed her eyes hearing the water from Helena's bath start to run as she smirked causing Leon to almost rush at her.

"Don't you dare think about going in there and-"

"Hurting her? Leon, I can't believe you would take me being so low."

He gave a shrug, shaking his head. His eyebrows furrowing by the second.

"After what happened during the Jarvis mission, I wouldn't be surprised if you did."

An almost sad look approached the woman's eyes as she sighed and paced around once more, keeping her distance from him as Leon's arms went down to his sides, still clenched up in a fist.

"Why the hell are you here? How did you find out about our location?"

Giving another light sigh, the woman looked at him dead in the eye and threw her hands up for a moment as she began to speak.

"You both make it so easy tracking you down. I mean the pendant I gave to Helena, she's still wearing it. Plus its you Leon, I'll always know where you're at. Always."

Leon's glare loosened up a little bit as he rubbed the back of his head, taking in a deep breath through his nose as he glanced up at the woman.

"Ada you shouldn't even be here. Not after everything that happened. You know this will not end well if Helena catches you here with me."

"You mean this won't end well for _you_."

Leon knew what she was hinting at, and right then his teeth started to grit. He had never been so infuriated by her taunting before until now. His circuit was coming loose in his brain as he tried his hardest to stay put. Had she been anybody else, he wouldn't have hesitated to take out his gun from underneath the pillow case and threaten to shoot her until she left. But given the fact that Helena was in the bathroom defenseless, and the cold truth that Ada was subtly right about her statement he couldn't do anything. Leon was trapped, a mouse falling for the cats ploy just like the old days. Except this was a mouse that didn't want to be tempted by the cat.

Ada walked out to the balcony, looking at the city lights as Leon let out a sigh and followed her. Staying away from her as far as possible as he shook from not only the bitter wind but also his nerves. The woman gave a normal look of displeasure as she glanced over, seeing how uncomfortable he was.

"You alright?"

She asked almost coyly as he shot her a look, a familiar glare coming back to his eyes.

"What the hell are you thinking barging into mine and Helena's hotel room acting like you're entitled?"

Ada gave a light shrug gently rubbing the back of her neck.

"I never saw it that way, and Leon if you really didn't want me showing up you could have gotten rid of that butterfly hair clip when you had the chance."

His eyes got somewhat emotional as she said that, his face glancing down at the traffic below as he clenched his fists. She gave a light smirk, seeing that she had mentally got to him for the moment.

"I saw it right by Helena's side of the bed. You must have wanted to see me still if you allowed her to keep it, hell even on the wedding when I am sure you found out about the gift you knew. Deep down you knew I was up to something yet you still had let her hang onto it. Is it because you can't let me go still or-"

"Don't be fucking ridiculous."

Leon normally wasn't one to curse nor raise his town so harshly but in this instance, what she was implying made his gut twist in a huge knot.

"I'm married and nothing is going to change that. You and I both know very well. You once told me I needed to let go of the past. What I can't get nor understand is why, why can't you?"

Ada bit her bottom lip slightly, feeling a paining sting enter her heart. Changing her demeanor she leaned up from the edge of the balcony and stood up straight looking at Leon sincerely.

"I'm not here to talk about the past, I'm here to discuss the future. I know I can't have you back, and I know-"

She paused for a bit, almost as if her tongue were forbidden to let the words roll off as she gently shook her head. Goosebumps hitting her skin as she gave a serious look towards Leon.

"I know what I did during the Jarvis assignment was a mistake. I broke my promise I kept to that girl after she freed me from the government prison those years ago. For that, I am sorry."

Leon's look loosened up as he shook his head, glancing off towards the entryway to the hotel room as he contemplated things.

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to. You got to stop using me as a means to antagonize her just because in the end I chose her, I chose life."

Ada had no look of emotion whatsoever to his statement as she gave a light glare.

"Do you regret the kiss we had during Jarvis?"

"Every damn day I do. I never can forget it."

"Leon-"

He put his hand up, silencing her as he shook his head tenderly giving a depressed stare at the woman as he looked down at the ground. His hair lightly blowing against the wind as he collected himself. Painful memories of the past began to linger in his blue orbs as he thought about the words he must choose wisely.

"Ada...I am sorry about the miscarriage. I really am. You know as well as I do I would have been there by your side through it all. Hell, I even went to you long after the fact to comfort you."

Ada crossed her arms, her body growing tense as he brought this up. Her eyes, gently swelling up with some tears but they were barely noticeable.

"You never told me how she felt about it."

Leon shot a frustrated look at her as his mouth was a gape for a moment.

"Is that what you're so hell bent about? Wondering if she would have let me have you instead?"

Ada wiped at the corners of her eyes, a woman so hell bent on never showing the slightest hint of emotion, now broken by a simple question. She rubbed her forehead slightly, there was no way she could outmatch or cleverly talk her way out of this.

"Would she have?"

Leon shook his head.

"Yes. She told me she would have let me go back to you, but in the end it was my choice not hers. Mine. Ada you know I would have been there for you, and our-"

His voice seemed to fade as he couldn't bring himself to say it.

"Child."

She finished up for him as he could feel his heart leaping out from his chest.

"Yes. I would have been but me and you, even with it, we could never be what we were before. I'd still be with Helena. She's the one for me. I don't know how many times I must apologize for this, but I am getting sick of it. Look, a part of me will always love you. I can never erase fifteen years especially with what we have done and what we had been through, but things are different. I know you've been in pain ever since but believe me when I say this, you're doing nothing but causing me pain now. Can't you be happy for me, just once?"

Ada's eyes closed and reopened as she gulped a bit, swallowing bitterness into her body as she felt a huge weight being lifted from her shoulder. She then rummaged through one of her jacket pockets, taking out a small disk and walked up and handed it to Leon, her lips curving into a smile that didn't seem to hide any cruel intentions. It was something he was not accustomed to, and it had him worried.

"Are you going to tell me why you are here?"

"Yes. Well, the disk and the information placed within it should tell you especially the reason why I am on this assignment but Leon there is something much more important I need to discuss."

He nodded at her, feeling himself for some reason opening up. He swallowed bracing himself for whatever she had to tell him as he found himself blurting out a question.

"Why are you so hell bent after Crane?"

Ada knew that Helena must have told him about their encounter in the bathroom, and a familiar look of disgust and uncertainty washed over her features.

"This is what I came here to discuss in regards to the future. Leon, Crane has your-"

Ada caught something out of the corner of her eye, and then the figure became all too clear. Helena was standing right in the edge of the door frame leading into the hotel room and as she met eyes with both her and Leon, tension filled the air.


	16. Chapter 16: Glass

**Enjoy this chapter and thank you for continuing to read, you have my utmost thanks!**

Water trickled down her dampened hair, the cold wind from the night shaking her entire body as she placed her hand on the doorway. Looking over at Leon and Ada, Helena's eyes narrowed as she had a look of disbelief and anger raging through the fibers of her being. Ada slowly backed off, giving Helena for once a sincere glance as the woman walked over to Helena. Stopping in between the doorway, not one looking at each other as Ada cautiously breathed.

"I am sorry...Please, don't be hard on him. This was my doing."

Ada stated firmly before walking past Helena, not before Helena blocked her from continuing any further. The woman's deep brown eyes looked up into Ada's own mysterious orbs as she shook her head, giving off the impression of just how distraught she was seeing the woman once more near Leon. Ada carefully studied the woman's features, glancing up and down her body as her eyes pondered. Helena's shirt was see through. Ada came across something, something on Helena's body that made her eyes widen.

"You're-"

"Get out..."

Helena snapped almost in a harsh whisper. Ada merely nodding in agreement as she lowly darted across the room and exited out of the hotel room. Silence remained. A harsh vibe between Leon and Helena was beginning to settle as she merely looked up at him, water forming in her eyes as she sat down on her side of the bed, hovering over slightly, her palms over her face as Leon came into the room. Sitting beside her as he tried to touch her leg. She jumped back though, snapping and looking at him fiercely.

"Are you going to tell me what the hell was that?!"

"Helena please let me-"

"You know what I almost shouldn't!"

Leon's eyes shut tight as he shook his head, gently rubbing his forehead as he rested his elbows on his knees, propping his arms up so his finger tips were going through his hair.

"Nothing happened I swear."

"Leon—what was she doing here?"

Her voice instantly went from a lioness roaring to someone scared and nervous. Leon looked over, his eyes glancing over her features as he swallowed.

"She came here to give us some information about Crane and her involvement."

"What exactly is-"

"I don't know okay! She just gave me the disk with it and was going to explain something before you just showed up!"

Leon couldn't believe in that moment he had raised his voice like that nor the words that had escaped his throat so sudden. His body shook from it as Helena glared at him so deeply, his own heart could feel the daggers.

"So its my fault now? My fault that I ruined your quality time with her."

"Lena-"

"Fuck you..."

The tensity in her voice was subtle, but as clear as day it was there. She slowly got up from the bed, clutching onto her stomach a little bit as she felt some pain. Leon out of instinct got up and rested his hands on her shoulders only to be viciously shoved away from her.

"I don't need your help!"

"But you're in pain let me-"

"Leon don't! I can handle this myself!"

"Don't push me away! Please, c'mon you're my wife I need to help you."

She once more shoved him away from her, he fell back onto the bed for a moment before bringing himself up. An almost terror filled look captured his eyes as Helena's body tensed up for another moment, her mouth letting out a small groan. She was in pain alright, and he felt helpless in this moment as he got up and tried touching her again, only for his advances to be struck down. She was dead serious when she meant she didn't want his help, and he knew there was nothing he could do to satisfy her right now. Leon merely gulped, his throat hurting from the yell he had let out not that long ago as he tried to think about what to do, what to say. It seemed that no matter what action he was going to take, there was going to be a consequence but then a thought occurred to him.

"Lena, aren't you going to tell me the truth?"

Helena managed to lean up, the pain subsiding as she glanced over at him with a half glare.

"What truth? What are you talking about?"

"Just how bad this thing is. How sick you really are. I'm not dumb nor am I a fool. I know there is something else going on Helena, I can feel it. Your presence just gives it off."

"Maybe if you tell me about what was just going on outside while I was in the tub I might start talking-"

"So there really is something wrong with you."

"Cut the crap Leon, I don't have to tell you anything."

He could feel his fists clench as his mouth tightened. His expression turning into a furrowed madness as shook his head.

"We're married. You're my wife and I am concerned for you, you should tell me these things!"

Helena shook her head, almost dumbfounded as she couldn't help but lightly laugh.

"Yeah and you're my husband, dedicated to ME. No one else, ME."

"I didn't ask for Ada to show up out of the blue! Why do you think I would purposefully see her behind your back when I wanted you?"

Once more anger was seething in his tone as Helena's body tensed up from her own rage.

"Because it has happened more than once and until you get the balls to tell her to stay away from us I'll always have to worry! You put me in this spot Leon when you didn't come clean to her when you should have all that time ago!"

"I just told her tonight everything has got to stop!"

Helena groaned as she paced around a bit, trying to control herself. Her bitterness rising through her skin as she avoided eye contact with Leon as he stood there trying to think of how to handle this.

"Lena please, I don't want to fight...I don't—I am worried about you. So much. You don't understand. I'm sorry for yelling and I am sorry this ever happened. This has got to stop, you're right."

Helena shook her head.

"How many times have you spoon fed me that load of crap? It will never stop. You'll always carry a torch for her no matter what.."

"Lena-"

"I can almost see why none of your other relationships worked because you could never get over her!"

"Shut up!"

His fists collided into the wall nearby, almost leaving a dent as Helena jumped back. His body quaked and his veins seemed to seal shut as he shook his head, feeling like a fool for doing such a childish thing but at the same time angered. Angered that she had pressed his buttons on this subject, and that alone reaffirmed something, something that really struck a nerve in his heart strings and hit him right in the face. He got worked up because he was still not over Ada. His sweaty right palm rubbed across his face as he took a moment to breathe, his frustration subsiding as he got so emotionally worked up from the realization that he had some small, almost unnoticeable tears coming from the corner of his eye. Helena was dead silent, her breathing almost unrecognizable as she looked at him sadly and took notice of the clear gems going down his face. No words need be spoken for his features conveyed what was surfing through the agents mind. Helena merely swallowed, her body trembling, goosebumps forming on the back of her neck as he bowed his head, almost disgraced it seemed.

"Why—why did you...marry me?"

Helena spoke, her voice and vocal cords trembling as her own sadness began to emerge. Leon merely kept his head low as he slumped up against the wall for a brief moment, feeling himself, his body go numb. He was now on the floor sitting, his legs stretched out and his eyes closed as his head tilted towards the ceiling.

"Because I love you..."

"N-no..."

Helena stated as she shook her head, her body walking past him and over to the bathroom. Leon merely looked up, a pleading emotion crossed his broken features as Helena's tears became more prominent.

"You love the idea of me."

She said softly before closing the door to the bathroom and locking it tight. Leon's hands went to his ears for a moment as he curled himself up into a tight ball. For someone, an agent such as him to be doing this was almost unseen. He couldn't remember the last time he felt so cowardly, so fucked up. His shoulders trembled as he could hear Helena sobbing on the other side of the wall. His body adjusting so that way his face was pressed to it, and almost, as if to somehow hold her he pressed his arm and hand to the wall stroking it gently. He shut his eyes, more tears fell. Something in the pit of his gut telling him to knock on the door and go comfort her, the other side screaming not to do anything out of fear things would only get worse. One thing was certain though this night, Leon was truly worried this might be the end for Helena. This was the breaking point, and like every other relationship he had, it was his fault.

A few days had gone by, and both Leon and Helena barely had spoken a word to each other. They kept their distance from one another carefully planning and calculating what needed to be done. Each of them separately going over pieces of the mission without the other to draw from. It was almost like playing a game of chess without having a second partner. Difficult to understand, but at the same time a bit of relief from having to worry about another partner coming up and taking a pawn when one least expected. Hours were coming to a close, the last and final party was going to be occurring and both of them had to be on their game. This was a make it or break it night. If they didn't get one hundred percent into Crane's circle it was game over for them. As they both found themselves getting ready, that is when the tension started to come back. Though it wasn't as bad as the few nights before, a sense of hostility was in between them. Neither one willing to talk about it without the other giving in first. They both knew, and kept telling themselves this was mere child's play, and that they should just come out and be open but their nerves were still shot up. Too many things were occurring at once all the while inside they were screaming at the top of their lungs with the other not noticing. Helena knew she had to tell Leon the truth about what was wrong with her very much as well as Leon knew he had to work things out to the best of his abilities with Helena, all the while kill off whatever emotional attachment he had to Ada. In the grand scheme of things it seemed like he had the short end of the straw, but little did he know the ticking time bomb going off within Helena, and each time she had thought of it as she was getting on her dress she grew more frightened.

A loud ringing sound came from the bedroom as Helena traveled out, picking up Leon's cell phone she put it on speaker, not bothering to put it on face time because the truth was she didn't want to be seen nor look at anyone at the moment.

"Hello?"

She said as she was putting up her hair.

"Helena! Great to hear from you its Hunnigan."

"Way to state the obvious."

She remarked as she got on some bracelets. Hunnigan let out somewhat of a groan as she breathed through the phone.

"Well hello to you too. Listen, neither you or Leon reported within the few days. I and the agency were beginning to worry about you both."

"No, don't worry everything is-"

Leon came out of the bathroom right before she finished up her sentence. Their eyes met each other, their expressions both conveying sadness as she turned away from him.

"Fine, everything is fine."

"Okay that is good to know. Listen you two nearly gave us a heart attack because we have been trying to get a hold of Jake and Sherry for a while now either but no one has received any communication from them thus far. Do you two know anything about this? They are suppose to report directly to us and then to you on the dot."

Leon caught wind of what was being said and looked over at Helena, almost with a questioning look as if he was asking her if she had heard from the pair. She gently shook her head as Leon cleared his throat.

"No Hunnigan, we haven't heard from them at all. I assumed though that they were still keeping tabs with you . When was the last transmission?"

"Roughly forty eight hours ago. I'm sending Redfield and co over there to Europe to check on their situation."

Helena's eyebrow cocked a bit.

"But shouldn't there have been members of the SURGE team and Sherry's Bioterror Counter group members alongside them, helping them dispose of the B.O.W's Leon and I have been purchasing?"

There was a pause on the phone as Helena looked up at Leon, their eyes conveying worry to each other not about what had been going on between them but the worry for Jake and Sherry. The silence was killing them until they finally received something on the other end.

"Yeah, according to their latest report there should have been ten SURGE members and at least twelve of Sherry's people. They have not reported into their bases either. I don't know whats going on you two, but I don't like it. There is just something off about the whole thing. Anyways tonight is the final night of the Crane benefit party, do you think you guys are in the clear for Borra Borra? I need to get a validation as soon as possible just in case I need another team to over and check on Sherry and Jake in Europe and send Chris and co over. I would rather much see him overseeing the arrests over there than the secondary SURGE team we have set up because of their inexperience."

Helena and Leon had not talked this over with one another, discussing whether or not they were in the clear based on the evidence and such they had. There was a pause between the two, and a restlessness that overcame their bodies as Leon glanced at the phone then back to Helena.

"Yeah, we're in the clear."

He stated for them both as he could hear Hunnigan typing on the other end of the phone.

"Okay, you guys be very careful tonight. Be on your best look out and if anything happens, get yourselves out."

"Will do."

Helena responded as Leon came over and clicked his cell phone off, gently tossing it back to the bed as he sat at the foot of it. Helena, also taking a seat but keeping her distance. An uneasy feeling swelled in their guts as they tried to determine who should make the first move.

"You-"

"I-"

They both interrupted each other, speaking nearly almost at the exact same time as they both let out equal sighs in exchange. Leon rubbed his left eye a bit as he looked over at Helena, gulping in some air before getting ready to speak.

"So, what are we going to do about us?"

Helena glanced around the hotel room, her arms folding together.

"Define us."

"Us. Our partnership, our marriage, everything. I want to know what you're thinking or what you have been thinking since obviously we haven't talked."

"Leon we're gonna be late-"

"No,"

He scooted over to her and firmly grasped her hand into his. No matter what she would try to do, even get away he wasn't going to let her. They were gonna settle things here and now. He had made peace with the fact earlier on as he was getting ready in the bathroom. Helena glanced down at his hand, feeling the warmth radiate into her own. It was difficult to avoid him now, and she soon found her own barriers being once more torn away by him. He always had this effect on her, no matter how upset or how angry she could be at some point he would get to her. There was no point in fighting it.

"Lena, we're staying here until we both know whats going to happen. Okay?"

She gave a light nod, her eyes not leaving their hands as he awaited for her to speak, giving her the floor with this one.

"We need to be on our best tonight. Got to act natural like nothing happened."

Leon nodded.

"I couldn't agree more."

"And after the mission—I think we need to be separated for a while."

Before he could respond or anything, he could feel some part of his chest being shot through. This is what he had feared deep down. The last time anyone needed separating from him, the relationship collapsed in on itself. A terrible feeling overcame the agents blue orbs as he looked over at Helena, mouth slightly gaped trying to find words to come out from his throat.

"Separate? For how long?"

Helena merely shrugged as she managed to work up the courage and looked into his eyes.

"Until we both get our shit together I guess. A week or so would be all that I ask. There is just too much going on with me and you."

Leon gently let go of Helena's hand as he found his hands resting in his lap. His head bowed as if he was at a funeral, feeling like things were already broken. Helena could sense that in him as she gently, and somewhat hesitantly touching his shoulder, gently rubbing it.

"I'm not asking for a divorce Leon."

"I—I know. It's just...no matter how you say it, it hurts."

"Well what do you expect me to do, sugar coat it?"

Leon shook his head deeply, feeling like a fool for the words he had used and sensing her irritability.

"No, no. I just hate being away from you. But I know you're right. We both need this."

Helena nodded and felt her body calm down a bit, for the first time in these last few days she felt a sense of peace come to her. Happy that they both agreed to this. She needed a long while to think on them, to think about everything especially her place beside the man she loved. Leon looked over at the clock nearby the bed and shrugged, letting out a long sigh.

"I suppose we should get going though."

"You're right."

"Lena,"

"Yes?"

"Can you at least tell me how sick you are? Just be honest, I won't be angry or mad. I just want to know if you're really going to be alright."

Helena felt her chest tighten on the inside and her voice seemed to die off as she found herself gazing into Leon's eyes. For some odd reason it reminded her of the same look they had first given to each other, shortly after the president had been shot and Helena said Leon had a lead on the situation. A certain uncertainty yet trust lingered within both their orbs as they both seemed, to wait patiently for her to come out with it. Once more, like before in Tall Oaks she could feel herself wanting to delay telling him anything until she knew for sure it was appropriate. Right now, in this very hotel it brought up nothing but trouble within her eyes and stress.

"After the mission is over, before we part ways, I'll tell you."

Leon was a bit hesitate at first but then found himself nodding.

"Right. Don't tell me this is going to end up like how you led me on at Tall Oaks though."

He gave a playful smile and she returned one, still looking sad but happy at the same time.

"No, nothing like that. When I say I will tell you anything now, I mean it. Just like how I want to you to admit to yourself and to me you still love Ada."

His body froze for the moment as he found himself feeling like his world just tumbled once more. Fearful and frustrated he shook his head, his fingers traveling through his locks.

"Ditto to what you said, after the mission. Lets come clean together, for both our sakes."

"Right."

With that, the two got up and walked out of the hotel together and out to the car to be driven to the next party. During the ride, despite the sadness of parting from one another after the mission and the bitterness that lingered in their hearts, they intertwined their fingers and their palms became one. Squeezing the others hand tightly, though they had their problems they were going to be there for each other no matter what this evening. It was the only thing they were certain of in their lives together.


	17. Chapter 17: Gameover

**I seem to be shocking people in more ways than one lately..so the last chapter, holy shit right? Boy you're in for a treat in this one...**

**If it seems confusing to you especially with what I had implied with Ada and Leon, go and re-read the previous chapter Jealousy. Knowing the piece of information you received from the last installment will now become more understandable, especially with Helena's tension with Ada and Leon during the few times they had seen each other. So yes let me explain or sum this up since I don't know if I am going to be doing a story about Operation JARVIS yet..Ada was pregnant during YAINTGB of course she didn't know and neither did Leon. Ada, eventually after Leon fled the country to be with Helena, miscarried. She suffered from depression because of it and only told Leon way later about it when it started to get to her. More will probably be explained in the upcoming chapters when Ada and Helena get to interact with each other one on one.**

**Alright, enough of that. Brace yourselves. Enjoy.**

In the car as they were almost arriving at the next party, Leon discussed with Helena what had been on the disk Ada had given to him the night before. Evidently she was suppose to retrieve some viral samples from his compound in Bora Bora because there was a rumor circulating that he had managed to get a team to create a T-virus so powerful that no vaccines of any type could counterattack it. She also revealed that she had left Helena with the butterfly hair clip because she knew well in advance the attack at the main government facility was going to occur, and that the clip not only acted as a tracer to give off their location, but she said it would come in handy for something else. What it was, the two agents didn't know. However, what more could they do about it?

Using her data and ties she had previously with the Family, Ada had an idea of what Crane and his cronies were going to attempt. She was going to give someone the heads up about it to begin with but the attack took place much earlier than she anticipated. Helena almost found herself torn on this piece of information, half of her wanting to believe the woman had good intentions, the other still seething from her presence from before. Even Leon, after finding this out had a hard time knowing what was the truth. That is, until they recalled the dates in Vixayla's book, the few that happened to coincide with Markus's threats he received. They both knew something was up, there was something amiss they were just not getting. Whether it was from the stress of earlier or not, the two agents pushed it on the back burner as they arrived at the event. Getting out in a similar fashion, they walked arm in arm cautiously into the building. Much to their surprise, this event wasn't nearly as large. In fact there were probably less than two hundred people here.

The place was decked out of course, giant chandeliers and all surrounded the ceilings. Lights were turned up at every corner of the building, gentle music was being played, everything looked as it would have from what the two could gather from the previous parties. However as they walked further, and suddenly made eye contact with Vixayla at the foot of the giant marble stairway, Leon and Helena couldn't help but get the vibes. Sure, the woman before them already came off as cunning and deceitful but there was something amiss in the air, something that just wasn't registering in their minds.

"Nice of you two to attend the last benefit."

"Pleasure is ours, its nice seeing you yet again."

Leon put on his best performance as the woman simply closed her eyes coyly and smirked.

"You flatter me too much McDougal. Almost too much."

The woman then turned her attention towards Helena, it seemed that the tension the two women had at the previous event drifted for she gave a friendly gesture.

"So sorry about how things ended up last time miss Rosalie. I can only hope you're doing well long after the fact."

Vixayla's voice was mixed with sympathy but also something in her words screamed out, snake.

"No worries. Besides I think you had a little bit too much to drink so I won't hold it against you."

Helena gave the most polite smile she could ever forge on her lips, seeing the woman's eyebrows furrow but only slightly. She was trying to keep her composure as well, not wanting to bend out of character. Vixayla once more merely nodded and motioned for the two to follow.

"You two should consider yourselves very lucky. Only the best of the best get to be attending this last event. Cranes most trusted colleagues all reside in this room and for new money such as yourselves to be standing here is pretty rare. I think you really have showed him just how cunning and preservative your business is. Its not common for such a thing to rise from the ashes."

Leon somewhat looked over at Helena, wondering why the sudden compliments were coming from Vixayla. From what Leon had learned about her, she typically didn't give compliments not unless she wanted something or knew she was obtaining a long term goal. He dedicated that part of her personality to memory, recalling how she tried sweet talking her way into getting a deal from another bioterrorist investor at the last party. She was relentless in her skill, using every little compliment and emotion against the man until he ended up giving her more than what she asked for. It was a talent he considered dangerous, and he was determined not to full under her spell.

"You seem to be having a very good evening to be giving out such marvelous compliments to the likes of us."

Leon remarked as Vixayla turned around and gave a friendly gesture to them.

"I am only telling you what I have seen, and what I can expect in the future. You have done nothing but help promote my business and even got me some good recognition with other newcomers such as yourself. I have newbies in the bio terror market eating out of my palms now because of the business we have been conducting. I am merely giving you my utmost thanks. Crane is in the master service room awaiting you Jackson, he has something great to share with you. Rosalie, Edmona's on the second floor with a few other people she has been dying to have you meet."

Helena gave a nod as she looked up at Leon nervously. As much as they both didn't think tonight was a good time to be separated, they really didn't have much choice. He gave her a small gesture with his eyes to get going to the elevator nearby and meet up with Crane's wife. Helena gave a sad look, but also one conveying the expression she was telling him to watch out. A simple nod escaped from his body as he watched Helena calmly head to the elevator. Turning his attention back to Vixayla he crossed his arms, staying in character as he smirked.

"What kind of thing or goal does Crane wish to share with me?"

Vixayal's eyes somewhat rolled as she stared up at the ceiling momentarily, a huge grin coming to her face as she locked orbs with Leon.

"A vision. A simple grand vision."

"Lead the way."

He gestured as Vixayla led him up another flight of marbled stairs and down a large corridor. Leon could feel his body lightly shiver as the lights began dimming more the farther they traveled to this master service room the woman had talked about. Leon took notice of all the paintings that were around the hallways, portraits it seemed of people who were related to Crane. He even locked eyes with one that somewhat scared him. Simmons's eyes were glaring right at him as he paused for a moment and took a long look at the portrait. Leon, being an artist himself had a weird sense overcome his emotions. It was as if this were the real Simmons looking at down at him, saying all along he had won the battle in the end. In this moment, as Vixayla asked him what was wrong before following her lead once more, couldn't help but worry about Helena's safety.

He only had a few seconds with that picture but some part of it was haunting the back of his mind even as he glanced around at many others. It was so strange, almost as strange as seeing Kent Withrow's portrait not too far away from the two giant wooden doors before him and Vixayla. He could only assume they had reached their final destination. The woman clicked on a small button nearby and typed in a code as large metal pieces were being slated and moved around behind the doors. A few minutes later, they opened revealing a large room. A giant round table was in the middle, surrounded by bookcases and endless luxury it could make a single poor man sick. Leon stepped lightly behind Vixayla as she led him over to the table, almost simultaneously the men stood up and gave head bows to him as Crane awaited standing up and offering Leon a seat before grasping his hand. The mans pale blue orbs traveling up and meeting Leon's darker ones as he smiled as big as he could.

"Jackson, on behalf of myself and the fellow men here. We'd like to give you our warmest welcome, one in which not many people have ever received before."

Leon gave a nervous chuckle as he glanced around, still keeping a friendly smile.

"What kind of welcoming party is this?"

Crane merely gave a light laugh and let go of his hand, motioning for him and the other men to sit down as he paced around the circled table.

"Well I am welcoming you to the real rulers of the world, the real men behind the thrones the common people of the world have grown to kneel before. Jackson McDougal, I hereby welcome you to The Family."

Leon could feel a light gulp overcome his throat as he realized he had just entered the mother of all snake pits. Inside were the real enemies of the world, the people who kept bio-terrorism afloat the most. The ones that made his job that much harder. All the pain, all the strife in the world thanks to the viruses that haunted the planet since Raccoon City, was linked to these few people within the room. Smiling sweetly as if their hands were not stained with the blood of countless thousands if not millions. Leon, for many years would have given anything to be here, anything to finally be able to arrest such atrocious men but sadly as he gave a nod and adjusted into his seat more comfortably he found himself wanting to get the hell out of Dodge while he still had the chance. This was too close for comfort, and already he could feel beads of sweat trickle down the back of his neck.

"It's an honor to be in this room with the lot of you, and to be welcomed into such a prestigious group. I have to admit I have heard rumors about this group but I never thought such a thing could exist. I had no idea that you were even apart of it. This is just amazing."

Leon said with a charismatic voice as Crane gave a warm look of satisfaction.

"I figured with someone such as yourself being in charge of a huge company, you would come to hear about us. After careful consideration since the last few parties, my members and I decided that you would be best suited amongst our ranks. We do not typically do this especially for new comers but given the state of the world, we need more men, fresh young men like yourself to help pave the way to a glorious future."

"I couldn't agree more, thank you."

Leon stood up and gave yet another friendly hand shake to the man as Crane looked around the room and almost, with great expertise, gave each and every individual a different smile. Clearly, the dominance in the room could be seen just by the subtle hints of muscles twitching at the older mans lips.

"Now that we have the young one welcomed into the clan as they say,"

There was a pause and the men all took turns giving light chuckles as they looked up towards Crane who had such a powerful commanding presence it made Leon almost cower for a moment as he composed himself.

"Gentlemen,"

He then glanced over at Vixayla with a smirk and she returned a proper exchange.

"And lady...during recent years our clan has struggled greatly. We have lost many fortunes, some of us having to go into hiding, and some of us losing our dearest loved ones due to the world finding out about our plans. Our grand desires we had in store for civilization itself. Too many times we have been defeated and plundered into hiding, but I say that is going to change real soon, for tonight the vision I have to share with you is something grand. Something that I myself couldn't have even begin to contemplate had it not been so simple."

"Crane what exactly is this plan of yours?"

"You had discussed this several times at the previous party but you haven't ever given any hints. Besides how can we be certain this one is going to work for our plans? Simmons plot for overthrowing the government alongside Kent's antics have caused nothing but trouble."

"There is no way in hell my son is going to run up for government and end up like them!"

Leon couldn't help but overhear the men bicker amongst themselves, they all seemed very nervous. They had every right to be considering how within the last several years their numbers had been dwindled thanks to Manuela's intense attack on bringing the Family out to the public. Crane held up a hand, and everyone went silent as the gently cast a smile towards everyone before motioning for Vixayla to turn on a monitor nearby. She came to his side and handed a lazer pointer as he started showing graphs and pictures, virus samples it seemed and also global terrains. Leon's interest was immediately captivated by this and also scared. He knew whatever plan Crane was about to share would be elaborate.

"Gentlemen, I didn't say we were going to go through with sending one of our own to take over the US and eventually overthrow the world. No, we have learned not once but twice this will never work. Instead I was thinking why don't we go more along the lines of what we originally had planned. A viral outbreak so grand and so marvelous, it will take the world by storm. No one will be safe from it."

He motioned for Vixayla to start typing on a laptop nearby, her words and coding showing up on the giant screen before the men as they watched in anticipation.

"At the Bora Bora compound, my small team of scientists have managed to create a strain of T-virus so powerful that there is literally an impossible cure. It is not reversible, and it can adapt to become airborne and even accustomed to water. Which brings me to this slide in the presentation. Look at the world, gentlemen. Do you see what most of the earth is covered with? Water. Water is life. It is the very foundation in which we came from, the same essence that gave birth to the evolution of life on this planet. Water will be that very thing that will bring us one step closer to a rebirth of humanity, a new opportunity for us as a species to excel once we eliminate unnecessary wants from the gene pool left over. We all know that the T-Abyss scandal ended in disaster, there is no sure way to infect the worlds oceans but I had in mind we could hit the world much closer to home. Drinking water, for example, is seen as must need. Without it you literally cannot live. My proposal to you all is this: using the new strain of T-Virus we will infect the majority of the America's water source, including that of the White Houses and bring sheer terror into the country. Once everything has been infected, we will sweep in and take charge coming in as the heroes and then the ones who have survived the mayhem will have no choice but to bow to us. The rest of the world will bow to us. After the US has been successfully taken over, reinstated with a new government and such we will then begin our conquest on England, making our way to Britain and so on and so fourth. It may take many years before we have the whole world on their knees gentlemen, but within this next year America can be ours for the taking!"

Thunderous applause radiated throughout Leon's ear drums as he had no choice but to chip in his own celebration into the mess. He glanced around though carefully, feeling like it was all too soon for Crane to be sharing something this important especially with a newcomer whom wasn't even brought up to detail on things. Leon kept his cool though, his breathing steady and his character the same. He had a passive look to his handsome features as he came into eye contact with Crane who gave a creepy wink at his direction. Leon merely nodded and smiled as Crane cleared his throat, progressing to go through several other slides showing the plan he had to infect the water sources, how many men were going to be needed, how much the entire scheme was going to cost. Leon the entire time was trembling. He concentrated all his nerves to his leg, his right foot lightly shaking against the table as he tried to think of how he was going to let SURGE and the rest of the government know about this ploy. Crane already had men deployed into the states getting ready. All they needed was his personal signal, a call from him or something to initiate his mad plan.

"Um—not to interrupt this wonderful presentation we have going on, but when do you estimate the first waves of attacks are going to occur?"

Leon asked wholeheartedly as Crane cleared his throat. The man almost looked like he had an ah ha moment.

"Three days from now at ten the morning we will begin the first wave. Naturally we will hit Washington DC, and all main government facilities. Based on the trial run we had done weeks ago, having my Godson's brother go in and infecting the water supply to some of the workers ended up marvelous. However, since he mixed it with another virus the mutations were unexpected but based on our calculations after retrieving documents from the government database its seems like its fool proof."

Leon had all the proof he needed right here and now. Crane planned the attack earlier on for sure, and he recalled the three dates in Vixayla's blue book that Helena had retrieved, the ones that were marked in red. If he did the math right, it meant that those were the days the attacks were going to occur. At this point he couldn't wait to get out of there, couldn't wait until he could tell everybody what was going to happen. Helena and him didn't need to go to Bora Bora if that was the case. They could end this here and now, without having to go the extra step. It was so simple. So easy, so perfect. That in itself was a flaw though as Crane held up his right hand, the room went silent and his demeanor seemed to suddenly change. That proud smile fading to a modest look as he glanced around, fiercely at everyone. Leon was a bit taken aback. The man had been so poised and kind towards everyone now it was as if the real monster was starting to finally lurk from under the mask.

"Sounds very well thought out doesn't it? Almost too good to be true. Gentlemen we do have a problem though. Ever since our little fiasco at the capital occurred its has been brought to my attention that there are two government agents on the prowl looking to sabotage us."

In that moment, Leon's heart froze. His pulse almost ceasing to exist as his eyes couldn't help but bulge out. How did Crane know that? How did he get a hold of such information? Was he onto him? He quickly caught himself, more beads of sweat trembling down his neck as Crane put his arms behind his back and paced with a rough thud, showing that he wasn't amused by the news. The other men calmly whispered to themselves as they glanced around, awaiting for the man to speak up once more.

"And according to my reliable source who has brought this disastrous news to my attention, one of those very agents happens to be in this room right now. One of you, my friends and loved ones is the intruder. I don't know who or what game you have planned but I am going to find out just who you are in due course."

The man on command snapped his fingers, Vixayla headed to another room and Leon could hear some whimpers and struggles as the lights in the room got brighter. Coming into the clearing, near the middle of the room where the table was located at he recognized the people who were being brought in who were clearly tied up. His pupils dilated and his eyes almost bulged. Claire, Hunnigan and Sherry were brought out for the world to see. They looked beaten up, exhausted and scared for their lives as they glanced about. Each of them looking around almost weakly as they all met Leon's eyes as if pleading for him to save them. How did they get Sherry and Hunnigan so quickly? Why was Claire here? Where was Jake? How the hell did they get Hunnigan when she was back in DC? So many questions surfaced the agents mind as he could do nothing but just look and stare. His heart feeling like it was being ripped from his chest. Crane walked over to them, giving Sherry a light pat on the head as she jerked away from him, receiving a chuckle from the man as Vixayla handed him a syringe filled with something. Leon could only assume it was a virus based substance. His body tensed, his muscles itching to lurch out of the seat and full speed attack but he resisted though waiting until he looked up at Crane and saw the smile return.

"I know that these women mean something to you agent, whoever you are in the crowd. If you truly are one of us, then no one in the crowd will mind if I decide to demonstrate the power of this virus on these beautiful test subjects right?"

Leon's eyes widened and his mouth went a gape. He had to do something, anything to keep the women safe out of this mess. Crane waited a few seconds glancing around as he took Hunnigan by the neck, the needle pressing to her smooth skin as Leon out of impulse and instinct jumped up.

"Leon no!"

"Hunnigan!"

He shouted as he darted for her, only to be blocked off by the other members. Each one of them grabbing onto the agent as he fiercely tried to fight them all off. Claire and Sherry were at this point screaming asking Crane to call the whole thing off as the man just silently watched as Leon was pinned to the ground, two guns pointing to each side of his head as he was tied up. His face planted on the ground as he struggled still, growling under his breath in a fearful rage as one of the men propped up his chin and made him look over at Crane.

"I guess you won't be needing to report back to anyone considering the circumstances 'Jackson'..."

Crane said in a low tone as he pressed the syringe into Hunnigan. Leon's eyes and hers went wide at the same time as Hunnigan body twitched rapidly, the fluid making its way into her system shutting down everything. Her blood and pulse ceased to a halt. A look of shock and terror crept up on her beautiful features as she slumped over taking one last glance at Leon, her hand extending out for him as her finger tips shook. Her veins popped up from her skin like newly awakened flowers as her body convulsed before she finally fell to the ground. Her porcelain eyes never once taken off of Leon as she took in a final moment to register what had just happened to her body. Her breath became shallow, her eyelids dropped and eyes rolled back. The woman laid there. Her body but a lifeless had tears streaming down his face as he let out such a horrific scream it could have shattered even the most bravest of man's ears.

"INGRID! INGRID! NO, NO, NO! INGRID!"

Low weeps and words escaped the agents mouth as his body felt numb. His eyes now covered with water as his arms flexed and his body in a fitful rage shook against the restraints. Venom raged through his blue orbs as he looked over at Crane, his teeth bared out and gritting as he hissed from being hit by one of the men yet again.

"Stop this! Please! I'll do anything! Quit hurting him! Don't hurt Sherry or Helena!"

Claire shouted almost in a loud scream as Sherry curled up and wept loudly. Claire also had tears coming down her tender cheeks as she glanced down at Hunnigan's lifeless body then back to Leon. Shaking her head at him as he fiercely tried to get up only to be hit and threatened to be shot.

"I don't know, what do you think about this woman's plea, Markus?"

With that, Leon's eyes got even wider as he looked over, seeing the man whom he called an ally emerge from the shadows. His hands behind his back, his expression emotionless as he glanced around at the chaos that surrounded the floor. Giving a light kick to Hunnigan's lifeless body, Leon managed to find a loose spot and leaped up from the floor. His eyebrows furrowed into such a steaming glare it caused his blood to boil, his voice cracking as he screamed rushing for the man only to be shot in the shoudler. He feel to the ground, clutching his arm feeling the warm blood ooze from the surface as Claire and Sherry both screamed. Markus, still with his impassive look came over and knelt down beside Leon as the other members of the Family tied him up, this time for good. Leon's blue orbs pierced into Markus's deep green eyes as he spat at the man with seething anger. Markus merely chuckled and wiped his face off.

"Father Wesley, I think this will be enough for now. Besides, don't you want him alive to witness the world crumble against the very thing he spent all his life fighting against?"

"True words could never been spoken."

Crane commented as he motioned for Vixayla to drag the two girls off. They both struggled trying to get out of the woman's grasp but to no avail. They were both in shock, pure terror and their bodies were broken as they were dragged across the floor and out of the main room. After a few minutes a shout was heard and instantly Leon's ears registered the voice. Helena. They had Helena. He saw Edmona then come into the room from a small door in the room, leading behind her two women who had Helena's arms in shackles as she tried fighting against them. Leon's eyes focused right onto Helena's face as she fought hard trying to escape.

"Leon!"

She screamed as he was now being dragged off from the main room.

"Helena! Helena!"

"Leon!"

"Get them ready for Bora Bora. We have a long trip ahead of us."

Crane shouted at the men as they struggled trying to get Leon out of the room.

Her arms tried reaching out of desperation as Helena felt herself falling to the floor, Edmona hitting her at the back of the head with a gun that was on her person. Leon looked Crane right in the eye as more tears trickled down his face and in a bellowing roar he screamed.

"I'll kill you! Every last one of you!"

It was the last thing Leon could recall as he felt a pain in the back of his neck, and like everything that just happened now, his world turned black and red.


	18. Chapter 18: Stricken

**Before I begin lets pause and take a moment of silence for Ingrid Hunnigan...**

**Okay, now that has been done I have to tell you writing her off like that was really hard. It's only going to get that much harder as you'll be seeing the characters go through more hellish choices and such. Thank you guys for continuing to read, this isn't the end. I still got more chapters to whip out before this is over with so brace yourselves. **

**I already got people asking if I am going to be making a sequel or even write a story about operation Jarvis. And my answer is yes I do intend on writing two more stories, a sequel to this and the Jarvis one. But after this story is over, I am going to take a break from writing Heleon stuff so I can focus on my Resident Evil OC's back story. I feel like I need to take my time developing a good plot for both the stories I have with planned out because thus far I don't have a solid route I wish to go on. Also doing a story for an OC is a challenge I wish to take on because I feel like it will improve my writing even further. I'll be uploading her story here in case you guys are interested in taking a look and giving me some good constructive criticism. I am going to need it. **

**But anyways more about that will come later cause this story isn't over yet. I am still beating myself up over this chapter a bit because I find it lacking but alas I'm going to let you guys be the judge of that since you are the fans. Enjoy!**

A warm light overcame the agents body as he wrestled in his sleep. His facial features were drenched in sweat while a seething pain overcame his bottom lip. He stirred in his restlessness, feeling like his body was on fire and melting quickly. As he slept he could see Hunnigan's lifeless body before his eyes, the cold paleness seeping into the backs of his corneas as he shot up from his slumber. Almost swearing before the heavens he had heard Helena screaming at the top of her lungs and no one was there to save her. His blue orbs, as they adjusted, glanced around. He could feel the sun hitting his forehead, a light burn coming to his nose as he managed to prop himself up.

A sharp tingling sensation traveled up his legs as he let out a hiss. Looking down, he could see a large gash in the right side of his leg near his calf. He wanted to lean up more, stretch his arm out and take a better look but as he moved his arms they were tied heavily together. He struggled against it, grunting somewhat as he let out an intense yell feeling the gash split open just a little bit. Sweating and trembling, he closed his eyes to take a few deep breaths. From the looks of his mingled clothing, the wound and how dry his throat had felt he estimated he must have been here for quite some time. Leon tried thinking back to what he could remember but most was a blur. His most prominent memory was Hunnigan dying in front of his eyes and feeling powerless to save her. This followed by Sherry, Claire, and Helena haunted the back of his mind as he breathed a little more slowly, trying to get what little strength he had back up.

Shifting to his side, he looked up at the ceiling where the sun was beaming through recalling a faint memory of being tossed out into the sun after evidently getting off a plane. He wiggled his toes in his shoes, feeling traces and beads of sand rubbing up against his skin like sandpaper. As he took in a deep breath, he could smell remnants of the ocean on his body as he tried piecing things together. From what it looked like at least in the agents tired mind, he had been tortured near the beach and tossed up in here for god knows how many days. Whatever the number, whatever the reason he felt weak and vulnerable. Leon in his life had encountered many moments where his life literally spun out of control, where things became so hellish that he wondered why he was still in one piece.

However as he pondered in his lonesome thoughts, especially about his loved ones who were now hostage, he sincerely began to believe he wasn't going to make it out of this one. No, it wasn't the wound or physically dying. Leon was more worried about emotionally fading away. He always had a strong will to survive even after his perseverance was tested after the Raccoon City incident, in which he contemplated suicide multiple times especially after being taken in by the US government and forced into becoming an agent. In the end he managed to convince himself that this was the best thing to have happened, and that he would be a fool for ending his life before it naturally began.

He leaned his head up against the cement wall, tilting his head to the side as he noticed a door nearby. His blue orbs filling up with small tears as he just kept on replaying Ingrid's death over and over in his head. His mind, a broken cassette tape not able to be mended by mere fingertips. She had been a huge part of his life in the agency, and to not have her or hear her voice during missions made his heart shatter into a billion shards. They had always had an unique bond, no, not one of a couple or lovers but it was always a familiar sort of concept. They had given a relationship a shot after he returned from Spain but it had just felt too weird for them both so they settled upon a friendship. To this day, this was the one relationship Leon had never told anyone about, including Helena after Ingird swore him to secrecy about it to protect her reputation and his. Leon and Ingrid had a bond not too many people could claim to have. If there was such a thing as a soul mate concept but only among best friends, they probably had it. Though most people believed that Chris was his wing man, or his go to for average talks and what not everyone couldn't have been more mistaken. Sure, Chris was considered a trusted friend and buddy to have but no one knew the extent of the friendship Ingrid and Leon had together.

During the two year run Helena and he had been on, Ingrid was always there. Leon would sometimes find himself calling her up in the middle of the night to ask for advice or to have her give a perspective on certain things. She had without a shadow of a doubt, saved his relationship with Helena countless times especially after he relapsed with his drinking during the Jarvis assignment. Ingrid was his rock though the two never saw themselves as more than friends. They both saw each other almost as brother and sister. Always loving and caring for the others survival, but leading their own lives and circumstances. As Leon began thinking about this, he knew a part of his soul had died along with Hunnigan that night. There was a part of his spirit that he had lost to Crane. Almost like losing a part of his will to fight. He found himself glaring as he shut his eyes so tight he could feel pain radiate around the folds of his skin. Losing Ingrid dealt a huge blow, but if he were to lose Helena, the one person he had trusted more than Ingrid or anyone else in the world, and now as he thought back, even Ada, he knew he would have to die. He knew there would be no point in living without her there by his side.

Leon's eyes shot open as they widened, trying to adjust more to the lighting within the room. He had to find a way to break free. He had to save Helena and the others no matter what the cost. At this point he didn't even care about his own life. He would gladly, if Crane wanted would let the man take it away from him if it would make sure his loved ones were safe and sound. He let out another mix of a yell and a groan as he tried once more to break free from the ropes only to find his strength had been depleted. Rough pants escaped from his chapped lips as he saw the door swing open and a body had been flung in. The wooden door slammed with a thud as Leon's ears picked up on locks being tampered with. He looked over to the ground, his eyes squinting as he recognized the tangled mess of red hair. Claire slowly got up, her throat cracking as she let out some coughs. She had looked beaten and tired, but still in one piece unlike Leon. Also unlike him she wasn't bounded by anything. Leon tried squeezing little words from his mouth as he looked over to her direction.

"C-Claire."

Immediately, the girls eyes shot up as she limped over to Leon in a frenzy, embracing him in a long hug followed by pushing him up so she could try and get the ropes off his hands.

"I never thought I would be so happy to see you!"

She coughed as she tried gripping at the rope, seeing that it was fastened so tightly onto Leon it had begun to break the skin. Her eyes wandered about as she saw just how sick he must have been feeling.

"Are you going to be alright?"

She knew the question sounded ridiculous given the circumstances. Of course no one was alright not even she was as she managed to get a part of the binding off. Leon winced somewhat as he tried to think, still feeling consumed with guilt for not keeping everyone safe from what happened during the night with Crane.

"Who knows at this point Claire..but it doesn't matter about me. Where is Helena? Did she get out of here? Is she safe?"

"No...I honestly have no idea where they are keeping her. Sherry and Jake are being kept near the same area of this mansion. You and I have been pretty much been outcast into the basement and they have my brother stored away somewhere. I think nearby one of the bunkers next to the compound they have for Crane's B.O.W's. You've been out for a while now, three days or so. Every time they interrogated me and tossed me back in here I tried to get you up but you wouldn't budge, I got worried-"

She almost felt herself choke up as she got the last bit of rope off of Leon allowing the man to sit up properly as he looked at Claire's watery orbs. His own almost yet again swelling up with beads of water as he looked over to the door and back to the red head.

"I'm not dying anytime soon. Not until I get Helena, you and everyone else out of this hell hole. Do you know what they did to me? What did they do to you? They didn't hurt you too bad right?"

Claire shook her head and gave a light sigh, showing off some of the bruises she had plus the bloody lip she carried on her features.

"Aside from smacking me around a bit, I am fine. They did far worse to you. After they dropped us off at a private airport they took you down to the beach and beat you up until you couldn't breathe. Even tried to drown you. They made Helena watch."

Claire gently wiped away some sweat and blood from her forehead as she tried to recall everything that had been going on. From what Leon could gather, she had been under a lot of stress both mentally and physically. Just seeing her like this made him yearn to make things right. He meant what he had said before the Family had knocked him out. He was going to kill every last one of these people who had hurt his comrades and family. He didn't care, nor did the future scare him at all. He was going to make it happen and if god forbid they do anything to Helena he was going to take everything down, this whole mansion, the compound, all of it with him to his grave.

"They are cowards...all of them are. Mark my words they are going to pay for this."

Claire could sense the hatred in his words as she shot somewhat of a glare at him.

"Leon?"

"Claire, I need to ask you something. Something important. Did you know that Markus intended to betray everyone?"

Claire backed off a bit from him as she covered up her mouth with her sweaty left palm. Her eyes shutting then glancing around as she began choking up. From this response alone, Leon knew the truth and as the woman began to weep he shook his head with a sad frown.

"Why didn't you tell Helena or I any of this?"

"I-I couldn't. After the whole incident at the government base occurred with his brother, he swore to me not to say anything. He knew it was his brother the entire time, he knew all this was going to happen. The Family had been tracking you and Helena down for a long time, finally figuring out she was the one that helped get Simmons and Kent killed off..they took their time planning out this whole thing to destroy you both and eventually take over .I am so sorry Leon. I caught him talking to Crane after he was interrogated and sent back home. I confronted him about it, only to have Crane show up randomly at my house. H-He threatened if I told anyone anything of the plan they were going to kill everybody off. Markus said after he found out about Crane's visit to me, he was going to help me get you and Helena out of this mess and I went along with him thinking that he was going to keep his word because he told me—he told me his godfather put him up to all of this nonsense and he wanted to repent. But when me and him arrived at the final benefit to warn you and Helena, he hit me and I passed out...waking up nearby Sherry and then dragged into that room where—where Ingrid-"

"Claire-"

"H-He ambushed her at her home...took a plane trip here and made her play along with you and Helena like everything was okay. T-this was so sick...so so sick...I did everything I could to plead with them! To plead with Markus to let everyone go and not to hurt anybody! I got Ingrid killed! I got my brother, Jake and Sherry into this mess! I got you and Helena—I put you all in danger because I was so stupid! So stupid to trust that guy!"

"Oh Claire-"

"No, don't! I-I don't deserve...I don't deserve forgiveness. If anyone else dies, their blood is on my hands. Not yours."

She had at this point slouched over, deep in shock and in tears as her body radiated with goosebumps. Leon closed his eyes for a moment, collecting his thoughts before using what energy he could to get down onto the floor, pulling Claire into a hug. Her tears stained his shoulder as he gently rocked her back and fourth. His own expression mixed with sympathy and also more hatred for Markus. This man was going to pay if it was the last thing he did. Leon quickly backed off from Claire, coughing up a bit of spit and blood as she let out a faint gasp finally seeing the gash that was in his leg from the beach incident she had mentioned to him.

"Leon, you're leg..you're hurt bad."

"I know I am. But I got to get out of here. I got to find Helena."

"But Leon what is the plan?"

"I don't know. I honestly don't. But the one thing Raccoon City taught me, or should I say us is that we have the ability to improvise quite well. If I can get a splint on my leg and we find a means to get out of this room I'm sure if we both put our heads together we can get everyone out of here."

Claire's head bowed as she nodded lightly making Leon let out a light sigh as he perked the red heads chin up. Looking at her thoughtfully.

"You're safe, you're grounded, and you're here. Don't tell me you're going to give up on yourself just yet. Claire no ones blood is going to be on your hands. I'm not going to let that happen to anyone."

Feeling her spirit slightly mended from the words that she had bestowed upon him when he was at his lowest point, Claire gave a light nod. The woman then crawled around for a bit trying to get her bearings up. She finally managed to get onto her feet and her eyes scoured the area looking for something like a splint that would be able to help Leon out. The rope that kept his arms bounded should also come in handy, she thought to herself as she found a piece of wood under some rubble. Yanking it out from the pile of debris, Claire let out a light grunt as she stumbled backwards falling with the wood clutched to her chest.

"Smooth one."

Leon remarked somewhat sarcastically as Claire rolled her eyes. Coming over to his side, and taking the wood she placed it against his leg where the wound wasn't at. The rope shortly followed suite as Claire bind it around the the agents leg as best as she could. Leon let out a couple of hisses as he felt the pain seethe right through his nerves. He knew if he didn't get something on it eventually it would start to get infected, and given the fact, based on what Claire had told him, they were at Crane's mansion and personal B.O.W. compound he would be at a huge risk for viral infection. However he wasn't going to let this stop him. Even though he was broken mentally and physically at the moment, he was determined to find Helena and get her out. Tears and other emotions needed to be dealt with at a later time.

"Claire once we get out of this room I need you go free Jake and Sherry. I'll handle getting your brother and Helena."

"Are you certain we should split up?"

He gave a light nod, letting out another tender gasp as the rope was pulled tighter.

"You seem to have good ground work so far of the mansion. I'm sure you can find your way to them easier than I could. Trust me, we need Sherry and Jake out since they are quick. I'm certain knowing Sherry and how smart she is, she will have already figured out something or at least plan a means of escape from here. Tell me, since Chris has been intercepted along with the other SURGE members and since-"

He paused for a moment, shaking slightly.

"Ingrid is no longer with us...do you know if we have any other back up?"

Claire paused for a moment thinking to herself when she somewhat smiled.

"I recall Sherry the other day saying something about it. She said that Crane, from the looks of it, has a communication tower on the south side of the compound to use just in case of emergencies like for storms coming in or B.O.W.'s somehow getting out. She said if she can get to the tower she can hack into the frequencies and get both the US and European BSAA branch on the line. It's not a one hundred percent fool proof plan but I think it might work, especially if we can get the whole gang together."

Leon nodded carefully.

"Alright, then that is the plan. As stated, I'll leave Sherry and Jake to you. You just make sure they get to the tower and get a hold of someone so we can get the hell out of here."

"Right, but what if I end up bumping into Helena instead? What do you want me to do about her?"

As much as Leon needed her by his side more than ever, and needed to know she was going to be safe at all costs he knew the closer she might be to him the danger level would probably be very high. To top it off, he worried about his worst fear coming true. Seeing her be used against him would shatter whatever little shield he had keeping his hopes alive. He gave a light sigh though, as he looked over at Claire just as soon as she tied the rope in a knot on the splint. Uncertainty lingering within his blue orbs as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"If you encounter Helena before me, I want you to get her out the area and hide her somewhere. I can't risk her falling into either Crane's or Markus's clutches nor encountering any B.O.W's."

"Right."

"And Claire-"

"Yes?"

Leon closed his eyes for a moment and searched his heart as the words slipped from his mouth, truthful and honest.

"If at anytime you must choose between saving Helena or me. Take her. Promise me you'll swear that on your life. This is the only thing I'll ever ask of you."

Claire's eyes widened up a bit as she saw the protectiveness lingering in his eyes once he reopened them. His love and dedication for Helena could be felt through his dried up voice. She could only merely shake as she glanced at his leg and back up at him. Knowing he intended to possibly die here, and recalling how menacing he sounded earlier when he proclaimed everyone was going to pay, she had a sickening feeling in her gut. An intense instinct telling her Leon was planning to do something stupid, something dangerous.

"I'll do everything I can. But you just promise you'll come back to her in one piece."

Leon gave a light chuckle, coughing up again as he shook his head.

"I might not be able to keep it this time Claire-

"Leo-"

The door then slammed wide open as two men came in. Ripping Leon up from the floor, he struggled against them only to be hit in the back. Claire let out a yell, screaming at them to knock it off but to no avail her words were mere whispers thanks to her injuries. A third man came in, grabbing the woman and keeping her from helping Leon out as he was escorted out of the room. His body felt weaker than he thought as he kept on being forcefully shoved up the stairs and into a giant hallway. His eyes drooped as he could feel himself losing balance every once in a while. The pain in his leg still radiating up his spine despite having the splint to prop him up. He wondered where they were taking him, and he was half tempted to ask but his years of training told him he would either only get hit more, or nothing would escape the cronies mouths. There was no point in dealing with drones. Whatever destination he was heading to it would only be a matter of time.

His body felt like it had been dragged through a hack saw and then some as he and the two men ended up near a room. They were all on a balcony, looking down to a pit like cave. Electric fencing was surrounding the pit as Leon looked over the edge, using all his strength. His eyes went wide as he saw the horror before him. There were several B.O.W's running amok in the pit. Each of them desperately jumping around trying to find weak spots in the fencing system so they could break free. They almost looked exactly like the Licker mutants Helena and he had encountered when the outbreak had occurred at the work place. Their hissing pushed his ears as his eyes focused across the pit to the other side of the balcony seeing Edmona pushing Helena out of a doorway and leading the woman towards what looked like a plank. Oh god. Leon thought to himself as he could feel his heart melt into liquid and shoot through his chest, they were going to feed his wife, his Helena to those things. His eyes seemed to almost pulse out of his sockets as he saw Crane then step fourth from the door, motioning for Edmona to get back as she nodded and handed her husband a handgun, pointing it to the back of Helena's head. Her throat shook, her finger tips trembled as she made eye contact with Leon. A sincere warm smile hitting her features as she struggled to speak.

"Leon!"

"Helena!"

It was the only thing they could shout out for the moment as Crane started loading the gun with bullets.

"Crane! Don't do this!"

Wesley let out a low laugh as he smirked and turned to Leon's direction, seeing the man squirm and plead was mere child's play to what he had in store for the agent.

"Oh, after betraying me and taking me for a fool I am suppose to just stop?"

"Don't hurt Helena! Please, she had nothing to do with this! Its me you want! Come and take me!"

Leon screamed almost at the top of his lungs as he struggled to get out of the clutches of the drones holding him back. Their tight grip on his arms making him wheeze as he stared in horror.

"Leon don't be stupid!"

Helena shouted as Crane hit Helena hard. She was merely inches from falling into the pit but managed to catch herself, much to the Lickers dismay as they hissed. Blood from a wound she sustained on her head seeped from her skin and fell into the pit below. One of the Lickers gently licked it before going into a frenzy, shaking its head back and fourth rabidly as it let out more screams. Helena's eyes were filled with tears as she managed to get up only to have Crane press the barrel of the gun to her head. The cold metal sent shocks throughout her nerves as she kept her eyes on Leon instead of the monsters lurking just mere feet below her.

"You're an even bigger fool than what Markus gave you credit for. Do you really think I am that idiotic? This is Helena K. Harper or..I should say Kennedy... A DSO agent just like yourself and to top it off, the one who got both Simmons and Kent killed off! There is no way I am going to let someone like this get away and get off so easily for the crimes she has committed against my family! Unless-"

Crane lowered the gun down giving a light smile as he motioned for one of the men to hit Leon. Coming onto his knees in a gasp Leon looked over at Helena and could see fire lurking in those orbs of hers. If she had the chance she would have jumped over to help him had she not been surrounded by what appeared to be a sea of monsters. Crane behind her, B.O.W's below. She was in danger no matter where she turned. Tears escaped out of the corners of her eyes, not able to bear seeing Leon in pain as he struggled to get up.

"If you care so much for this scum of an agent you'll tell me right here and now what exactly was your little plan with that redhead?"

"Y-you knew?!"

"Why of course. I have a camera system in nearly every room of this vicinity. I have to be cautious especially with worrying about people trying to sabotage my work and my collection. Speaking of which, your little wife is looking quite delicious in their eyes. Excuse me, if they had them."

"If you lay—one finger on her-"

Leon let out a groan as he was kicked hard, the splint in his leg nearly breaking from the force as he let out a scream feeling the skin break more. Helena shouted at Crane and them to stop as the man merely looked onward. The smile never once leaving his face as he pressed the barrel to Helena's head more, forcing her to take a step towards the end of the plank facing the creatures below.

"Lets make this interesting Kennedy. For every time you don't tell me what your little plan is I'll make this woman take a step. From the looks of it she has roughly six paces before she falls into the pit and his snack time for my pets."

"No! Don't do this!"

"One..."

Crane shoved Helena, forcing her to take a step as she felt more tears trickling down her face. Leon's face was literally covered with sweat and water emitting from his eyes as he felt powerless to stop this from happening.

"Crane! I am warning you! Don't do it!"

"Two..."

The mans expression never once changed as he nearly tripped Helena. A loud gasp emitted from her throat as she almost fell, only to be teasingly caught by the man and forced back up. Helena shook her head as she could see Leon getting ready to cave in, his emotions skyrocketing all over the place as she shouted.

"Leon! Don't you dare tell him anything! You have to get the others out of here!"

"Helena I can't!"

"Three, four.."

Crane said with a bit more aggression as he pressed her forward more. Her body quaked as she could now look down and see the B.O.W's even more so than ever. She could even make out the saliva trickling down their mouths as they awaited her to finally fall. It was as if they were trained for this, trained to wait for their meal to fall into the pit.

"Alright! I'll tell you!"

Crane stopped, resting the gun to his side as he gave a shrug looking over at Leon with a sincere smile.

"Okay Mr. Kennedy. I am all ears."

"Leon no.."

Helena managed to mutter out as she fell onto her knees. Feeling exhausted and weak from earlier on. She was nearly starved for a few days as they had beaten her up. Leon's body collapsed as he panted heavily feeling the pressure of his wound starting to cave in as he tried his hardest not to keep Crane waiting.

"W-we were going to head to your radio tower...hack into the base and get help. That's the whole plan. I swear."

Leon then managed to get onto his knees as he panted heavily, sweat protruding all over his body as he looked at Helena. The fear and hopelessness in her eyes was murdering his very spirit as he looked back at Crane. He found his chapped lips opening as he tried to make himself the bait. Wanting Crane instead to throw him into the pit if need be. At this point, Leon didn't care what would happen anymore to him. He wanted to die now, especially if it meant Helena would live and as his eyes became locked onto Crane's Helena could see Leon had already made his peace. Her eyes quaked with bitterness as she shook her head, feeling powerless to stop him or change his mind.

"Please..let my wife go..I'm the one who killed Simmons...and Kent. You're issues all lie with me, not her. She's just my partner. If there is anyone you should be throwing into this pit its me."

"Very well. I will be more than happy to 'let her go.'"

Crane looked satisfied enough as he motioned for Helena to get up. She cautiously managed to pull herself back, getting her bearings not before Crane tripped her left leg. A loud scream emitted from her as she nearly fell into the pit. Her hand being held by Crane's as he slowly was allowing her to slip. Leon found himself bursting with energy as he tried getting up to run for her only to be held back. He screamed, he yelled, he cursed. He did everything his body would allow him to do as he watched on helplessly. Helena's fingers slowly slipping from Crane's sweaty palms one by one as he shut his eyes and yelled.

"DON'T! HELENA! HELENA! HELENA! PLEASE DON'T DO THIS! PLEASE! I'LL DO ANYTHING! PLEASE, PLEASE! HELENA! NO!"

When it finally came down to her final two fingers, Helena found herself looking down at the Lickers. Her mind racing a million miles an hour as she felt an instinct kick in. It was as if her adrenaline was flying through the charts as she managed to push herself up, breaking out of Crane's contact as she found herself on her knees balling her eyes out. Crane, jumped back and nearly slipped off the plank as he glared at the woman with such intensity she could literally feel it burn her eyes.

"What is the meaning of this?! Who said you could fight back!?"

"Please! You can't kill me! You can't do it!"

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't just take my foot, kick you in the face and allow you to be torn limb from limb?"

Helena let out helpless gasps and wheezes as Leon's trembling body shook so hard he nearly felt like he was going to have a heart attack or his body would explode. Crane crossed his arms, getting impatient as Edmona looked on with an inexpressive demeanor. Helena bowed somewhat, clutching to her gut ans gently rubbing over it with her fingertips as she whispered sweet nothings.

"I'm waiting!"

Helena lurched her head up, looking at Crane with a fearful yet dominant glare as she screamed with everything she had.

"I'm pregnant!"

In that very moment, everything within the area seemed to stop. Time seemed to freeze as Crane's gun was lowered and tucked into his pocket. A look of disbelief and yet sympathy lingered in the mans eyes as he examined the woman carefully taking in her features. Edmona's mouth lightly gaped, her eyes widened as she looked over at Leon. The agents eyes expanded, pupils dilated as his lips trembled from his cries and pleas. He could feel his blood cease and speed up, his ears pulsing rapidly with the words he just registered from Helena as he could only stare at her in shock and in awe, finally connecting all of the dots from before.

Nothing, not the mission, not his pain, not rescuing the others nor the plan he and Claire had mattered. Leon was ready to die right then and there. But now as Helena's sweet words continued to repeat over and over in his head he suddenly had a new instinct shock his system as everything became clear, and only one thing circled through his head. One drive was left: He had to protect his child.


	19. Chapter 19: Crimson

**Hey guys! This chapter and the ones to come have been very hard for me to write, I felt like they were lacking a lot of emotion and intensity unlike some of the previous chapters so I went ahead and rewrote quite a bit. I hope this comes out alright. Also, I need to bring up something important: I have been getting messages as of late saying how much of a good writer I am, but how much I 'suck' or am selfish for not whipping them out fast like I use to. I want to apologize, I know I use to be able to upload chapter upon chapter, but with my life and the way things have been its been difficult for me to do so. I thank you all for being patient with me and continuing to read on despite this. Just for those of you sending me such messages, and reviews please try to understand the position I have been in. Good stories, especially ones that bring in a lot of people take time to create. Look, if JK Rowling whipped out all the Harry Potter books within two weeks we all know deep down they wouldn't be the masterpieces that we see with our eyes. I am not saying my piece is a master piece, its far from it but I want each chapter to sound just as good as the last because I care about the excitement my followers and readers get each time I update. Anyways, enough of that. Please enjoy!**

Helena was on her knees in silence as her watery eyes glanced up and met Crane's. The man seemed to be puzzled and baffled with the news before him. Being part of the Family, Wesley was a human who could do the impossible such as taking the lives of others. Also given his status, it would be ridiculous to assume the man had never killed off women before or hell children for that matter. His fists were tied almost in a knot as he looked at Helena with strife lingering in those gray blue eyes of his. For the first time in a while, Crane felt trapped. A part of his heart strings tugged deeply for Helena as she began to weep more. His eyes traveled back at Leon's face who still looked shocked from Helena's plea as he struggled once in a while, trying to find a way out of the mess he was in.

Crane then looked back towards Helena, his lips curving ever so slightly as his teeth bit down gently at his bottom lip. He had Kennedy right where he wanted. His wife and unborn child was his for the taking, a double revenge shot. One so sweet it was literally handed right to the man, kneeling before him yet he let out a sigh. His eyes closed for a moment and reopened as he rubbed the back of his neck. Gaining his composure he smirked as his eyes traveled back to the agents.

"Kennedy! I may be many things but killing a unborn child's mother is something I do not take lightly."

Edmona, Crane's wife stepped forward. Her eyes curved into a dangerous glare as she looked towards his husband with disgust.

"Wesley they are—you can't-"

The man merely lifted a hand and in that moment, the woman's lips were sealed shut. She gently backed up but judging by the way her fists were clenched, she was more than peeved at the circumstances.

"As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, I don't share pleasure in killing pregnant women. Even though this 'filth' has caused my family endless problems and sadness I do not see it fit to kill her while she still harbors a child. Edmona, take Harper away."

"No!"

Leon couldn't help but let out a rage filled word as he struggled against the two men now with more vigor. His teeth were barred as he managed to look over at Helena. His blue orbs swelled with pain as he still felt helplessness creep into his body but at the same time, relief had taken over a part of his mind. He knew she was safe for the time being. At least he hoped. So many questions danced throughout the agents mind as he swallowed a lump in his throat. Why did she never tell him? What was Crane going to do about them now? Though he had these meager questions attack his head he still felt that strong instinct to be right by Helena's side and not being able to now hurt the most. No, not Crane pointing the gun at her earlier on or that she almost fell to her death. The man was more troubled by not being near the woman who was carrying his child, the person he loved more than anything in the world and then some. His fists shook as he saw Crane motion for the two lackeys to drag him off. His feet dragged as he desperately tried to break free once more.

"Helena! Don't give up! I'm going to get you out of here! All of us!"

Leon called once more, before he was finally dragged behind a huge door which was slammed so hard, Helena felt her body jump as she stared at it. Her lips trembled as she closed her stained eyes, hearing Leon's words echo throughout her mind as she tried really hard to hang in there. It was so hard to even think let alone move. She felt paralyzed by everything, from almost dying to almost having her whole world taken from her, to letting out the news she had kept secret. She didn't know what was going to happen now and that terrified her more than anything else. Even death couldn't hold a candle to the terror she contemplated.

Crane backed off from the plank as Edmona stepped forward onto it, kneeling down and grabbing Helena's right arm she ushered the woman onto her feet leading the weakened agent back to the safety of the deck. Helena's body barely had the will to move let alone fight as she just mindlessly followed Edmona back to the confinements of the large cell she was kept in for days. Her brown eyes glanced around at the bricks as her nose took in the rotten smells from decaying plant material nearby. She sat down in a small chair, the only furniture within the enclosure as her body quaked. The woman's nerves were now finally feeling the full shock of what could have happened to her out there, what could have happened to Leon. She gulped as she whimpered, glancing back and fourth between Edmona and Crane as they began conversing in front of her, not having a care in the world that Helena was listening. Wesley then took a pair of keys and locked the cell up, not before handing the metal piece to his wife who deeply sighed.

"Wesley you can't put our family through something like this again."

Though Edmona's voice was full of ferocity, she still kept herself composed. A part of her almost ashamed she was lashing out upon her husband as Wesley paced around the cell block.

"It worked out for the last child. I am sure we can handle another."

"Wesley! Don't make me go through this again, raising another child that is not of our blood! Especially from an enemy such as this! This wench killed off Derek and Kent! You have a gun, be rid of it once and for all! We planned for so many years to have agent Kennedy and Harper in our clutches, avenge your blood! Take that gun and-"

Helena gasped as she saw Crane literally punch the side of Edmona's face. The woman collapsed onto the floor, huddling up her body as she gripped at her cheek. The powerful sting of pain echoed throughout her skin but it was nothing compared to the emotional blow her husband was going to force upon her, yet again. A second time. Crane looked down at his wife, his eyes conveyed a sobering look as he looked upon Helena with gentleness.

"We will have a huge advantage having this woman's child within our family ranks. Not only will it be immune to the las plagas strain from Kennedy's gene pool, but there is a huge probability Harper's child will be immune to all forms of the T-virus thanks to the outbreak at the facility. She had been infected by a powerful T-virus strain at the time according to Markus's recordings," The man then looked back to his wife, with excitement.

"Edmona, think of it! A child immune to the T-virus! The potential for experimentation, the potential to be able to control the virus and all its properties...we cannot afford to let something like this slip between our palms. After she carries the child to term, we can kill her as soon as the baby takes its first breath. We won't let her slip away, not like the last mother. "

Edmona's eyes were filled with bitter tears as she nodded. Carrying herself up onto her feet she stared at Helena, almost it seemed out of jealousy as she graced her husband with her glance. Giving it some thought she then smiled almost sweetly as she looked down upon her feet.

"Sven only has older siblings. I am sure he would love to be a big brother."

"That's the spirit."

Wesley said as he came up to his wife and gently used his thumbs to brush away her tears. He then kissed her forehead tenderly as the woman lit up with a sheepish grin.

"What are we to do about Kennedy?"

Crane paused for a mere moment as he carried a sinister smirk and looked over at Helena whose eyes were perplexed and full of a shock hearing what was going to happen to her and her child. Her fists clenched as tears continued to stream down her battered cheeks, a low growl emerged from her throat as she shook her head as she braced herself.

"I'll dispose of him personally. After of course, we experiment on him using the very same virus that has infected this lovely lady back at their government HQ. I need to go down to the basement level anyway and tell him of the wonderful news that his wife will not be dying as of yet, and that is child will be in good hands long after it is born. Edmona, stay here and keep an eye out on Harper. I shall be back shortly and we can discuss how we can keep the woman healthy while the child is growing."

"You're all monsters! Every single one of you!"

Helena yelled as she came up to the bars of the cell and gripped them tightly. Her teeth were gritting against the other as her eyebrows furrowed into an intense glare as she hissed at Crane. He merely gave her a cold glance as he shook his head with a light chuckle.

"The only monster I see is the one before me who has destroyed my Family. You should consider yourself lucky my dear. I could change my mind and have this child ripped from your belly while you still squirm and cling to life like I have done to so many others, but no. I am giving you the best gift of honor any of us could bestow upon a thieving wench like you."

"I'd rather die than have you take my child!"

"Careful, you may just get your wish."

With that, Wesley, full of pride and ambition left the cell block. The door closed with a triumphant slam as Edmona's eyes rapidly blinked for a second. She then took out a small handkerchief from her small purse she kept around her left arm and blew her nose. Meanwhile, Helena was seething with furious rage and a strong maternal drive was kicking into full gear. She was not going to let them have her child, and she wasn't going to let The Family kill the father either. The woman's hazel eyes glanced around trying to figure out someway to get out. The urgency for escape was now dire. In fact as Helena's mind kept on replaying what was said between Wesley and his wife, she couldn't help but gently rub over her stomach. It was as if she could feel the baby's fear radiate throughout her body as she heard a click.

"E-Edmona?"

Helena barely whispered as she saw a cold metal gun between the two of them. The trigger was ever so gently being massaged by the eager woman's fingers as she looked at Helena with daggers. Helena's body began to shudder as she couldn't help but stare at the slender piece of weaponry, especially where the two holes were at the top that would deliver a deadly surprise. Edmona then chuckled as she closed her eyes for a moment, causing Helena to stand in defense as she grew more confused by the woman's expression.

"Edmona, what do you intend on doing?"

Helena asked nervously and with a strong sense of caution as Edmona drew closer, causing Helena to take a few steps back until her spine was pressed to the cold concrete wall.

"You really believe I am going to let some illegitimate child prance its little feet into my family? I already had to accept a mongrel into my heart and home. I don't care what Wesley promises, I don't care what direction he takes this child to. His company and his ambition can go to hell for all I care!"

She paused for a moment pointing the gun barrel towards Helena's belly.

"I will not let another impure brat rip out my heart and call me mother when its real mother lies dead and her bones burnt to ashes! Wesley will not put that on my conscience again!"

A click and a bang radiated throughout the entire cell block. An eerie silence filled the room to the brink as Helena clutched to her stomach tightly. Her face carried a horrific look as she could feel her body almost go into complete shock. It was slow and tantalizing, almost bitter and suffocating as she managed to look up. Her mouth was a gape as she licked blood from her lips, seeing Edmona with a expression so horrified she looked like a deer in the headlights of a pick up truck. Blood oozed from the older woman's stomach as her fingertips trembled and dropped the gun. The woman then fell onto her knees, clutching at the bullet wound that seemed to spray out crimson at a rapid rate. Low gasps for breath wheezed out of her throat as she turned around and looked to see a woman in red. That signature smile haunting her even at the end of her rope.

"A—Ada W-Wong...I-I should have..You'll never have Sv-Sven..I-I won't..let..you.."

Edmona said in a chaotic frenzied voice as Ada merely came up and placed the nose of her small handgun to the womans temple and pulled the trigger. A mess of blood and entrails splattered upon the woman's pants and painted the floor with a deep crimson. Helena's eyes were almost white with surprise as she squinted her hazel orbs lightly, shaking her head. To see Ada in the flesh before her deeply troubled her, especially since she had a gun on her.

"Ada..."

It was the only words that could escape from Helena's lips as she wiped away the blood from Edmona that coated her soft skin. Ada merely gave a passive smile and took the spare keys from Edmona's corpse and unlocked the cell, going in rather slowly as she then placed a small duffel bag down and unzipped it. Helena leaned up and carried herself over, looking to see what the woman was getting out. To her shock it was the gun that Leon had given her those many years ago, the same one that was dedicated to Deborah's memory. Ada then handed it to Helena who took it nervously as she gulped, glancing down at the engraving as she then focused her attention back to the mysterious woman before her presence.

"H-How did you get this? I left this back at the-"

"Hotel. Yep, you are correct. After I found out you and Leon had been taken I went back and retrieved some of your belongings. I found this rather remarkable piece of weaponry among your possessions. I figured you would need it when the time came."

Helena locked eyes with Ada as she gently smiled. Even though her body was tense and though she still carried cold feelings and contempt towards the woman, she couldn't have been more happy to see her.

"Thank you."

She murmured as Ada gave a light nod.

"Don't worry about Leon. I already helped him and the Redfield girl out. We will meet up with them momentarily along with Chris and Markus after they retrieve Wesker junior and Birkin's daughter."

Helena gasped.

"You mean everyone is okay? Wait, Markus.."

Her voice trailed off as she gave a grimacing look towards Ada, clenching her fists into a tight ball as she shook her head.

"That man is the reason why we are in this mess. He turned us in, got Leon hurt and Hunnigan killed. Ada, I know you don't like to explain yourself but this is the one time I am begging you to tell me what is going on. Every bit of it, no running. Why is Markus helping us out after committing treason?"

Ada merely closed her eyes and smirked.

"What makes you think I'll stick around long enough to let you-"

The gun in Helena's right hand clicked as she held it steadily at the woman. A deep Cheshire grin appeared upon Ada's beautiful features as she shook her head, but only slight. She then walked over to the chair that Helena had been sitting in prior to Edmona's sudden death, and took a seat upon it. Crossing her legs, Ada then motioned for Helena to put the gun down.

"I was only pulling your strings along. Like I stated earlier, we will meet up with the others momentarily. Please, would you kindly put the gun down?"

Helena found herself deeply sighing as her fingertips shook. She wasn't in the mood, not after all this to play any games Ada might have had, but as she caught a glimpse into the brown eyes of the woman sitting in the chair, almost looking saddened, Helena found herself pressing the metal piece to her side as she sighed. A fair nod was given to the spy as she crossed her arms and looked at her intently.

"This better not be some sort of joke. I'm still not warm and welcoming since the incident at the hotel with you and Leon."

Ada closed her eyes, taking in Helena's words as she gave a low nod.

"I understand. Its only within reason you would still be mad at me. As stated before I left though, don't hold this upon Leon's head. I came to him when I shouldn't have, or I should say without your permission. Look, Helena, I am not here to fight or to take Leon from you. I know you find that hard to believe, trust me. I can see the venom in your eyes. I'm here to give you the truth, the truth about myself and why long after this final mission of mine is over, I'll never see you or Leon again."

Helena let out an almost faint gasp hearing that last part of the woman's words. Thinking that she might have been lying, Helena gave a warning glare which soon loosened up as Ada's confident and prideful face turned pale with sadness that seemed to droop within her eyes. Her lips lightly parted as she nervously bit down on the top of her soft skin, looking at Helena almost helplessly. In all the time that the two women had known each other, neither one of them saw this deep vulnerability. In a way it was almost like a magician revealing a secret to one of his personal tricks. A puzzled feeling overcame Helena's gut as she found herself sitting upon the floor, looking up at Ada with a mutual glance.

"I'm listening, Ada."

Helena gave a nod as Ada closed her eyes, a gentle tear stroked the side of her cheek.

"Where do you want me to begin?"

"The beginning of it all."


	20. Chapter 20: Puppets

**You all wanted more, here you go! Have some more! This was a very tiresome chapter, truth is I couldn't wait to get over this one. There was a lot of detail but I greatly cut back because I thought, well, things are about to get very confusing possibly so why bring on more trouble? Anyways, I hope the flow of this chapter is alright. I still can't get over some parts but hey if you guys like it then that's good enough for me. Also thank you kindly for the reviews and messages, at least the positive ones. It has been very helpful and inspiring. Enjoy!**

Leon felt himself being dragged like a rag doll as the lackeys finally made it near the basement level where Claire was, evidently residing. The agent grimaced once in a while as he felt the pain in his leg swell up, once and again just for the amusement of the two bulky men one would stomp on his wound. Every time they did that, a little flame in the corners of Leon's brain began to grow. Bigger and bigger it was becoming. He was already on edge from the events that occurred earlier on, especially with Helena and now these guys were pushing it. Leon never felt so much contempt for these people, nor did he ever recall being this so enraged in all his entirety of being an agent. Even during events such as the China incident or the Spokovitch case, he still kept his cool but no. This mission was pushing the envelope in more ways than one, and as his blue eyes glanced around he knew he had to take the initiative. Too much was at stake for him to be allowed to be a rag doll for two moronic men.

Finally, after what seemed to be forever they made it to the door of the basement cell. While one of the men took a moment to open the rustic piece, the agent seized the opportunity. He dropped down to the ground, managing to use his healthy leg to trip the one brute who had him griped by the shoulders causing the man to tower down. Leon then jumped back and upper kicked the other man towards the door followed by giving a punch to the face. The man sneered as he lunged towards the agent only to be dodged as Leon side stepped and using all his force, Leon elbowed the man right in the spine. He could have sworn for a split second thunder was in his ears as bone shattered. The man was screaming in dire pain as Leon came up to him, and in a fit of rage and pure exhaustion he put his full force into his foot and stomped on the mans head. Leon, out of pain collapsed and sat up against the wall nearby the door panting heavily while looking at the scattered remains of the man he had killed, and looked at the other who was passed out. His fingertips rummaged through his hair with fury as he tensed up. He hadn't killed anyone like that in a long time, not in cold blood like he just did now. Not since he ran down and shot the man who killed the two little girls back in Europe during the Yukata case.

As he winced he couldn't help but wonder if this was the only battle he was going to win. Helena was probably on the far side of the mansion and there was no way he was going to be able to walk, at least for a while anyway. He then jumped back as he heard a noise, coming from around the corner. He braced himself as his breathing became much more heavy until he saw a pair of familiar green eyes looking right at him.

"Kennedy! You're alive!"

Markus stated almost in shock as the agent shot the most terrifying glare a human could muster as he lunged up and grabbed the man by the throat, proceeding to try and break it.

"You did all this! This is your fault! Because of you Ingrid is dead! Because of you my wife and unborn child could die you piece of shit!"

"Leon put the man down!"

The fury behind Leon's icy blue eyes was so intense he could barely even hear the words reach into his ears as he put more pressure onto the mans neck. Any second now, the bones would snap like tooth picks. He could almost feel the rush of anticipation hit every core and crevice of his body. Leon was in a dire vengeful state of being. With his family at stake he was broken, and like a caged animal finally being let free he was going to unleash all the suffering that had been dealt onto him. Markus's eyes were growing dimmer by the second as his body struggled against Leon's, the poor man couldn't even get a word out let alone as gasp until he felt Leon's fingertips being pried off.

Leon let out a hard and bellowing scream as he could feel his body drifting away from Markus. In his drunken state of being he punched, and kicked at whoever was dragging him away only to finally collapse. His breathing was hitched and rapid as he began tearing up. He had never been so defeated and so smitten by rage before that when it finally hit him, he broke down. His body fell limp as he muttered over and over again.

"Helena...please...not her...not my Helena...not my Helena..not my baby..please.."

His sobs were so profound he nearly felt like he was going to choke on his own spit. Markus and the other man hovered over Leon as Markus rubbed his throat, still coughing and still holding a strong fear in his eyes as he glanced at the wounded man.

"You alright there Sinclair?"

"I-I will be fine. It's not the first time he's choked me, thanks for asking though Mr. Redfield."

Chris's weary eyes looked down at Leon as he held the agent down, trying to get him to calm himself.

"He's really out of it. Shock and stress from everything."

Chris remarked as Markus nodded in agreement, seeing Leon's eyes glow with anger as he caught the mans glance.

"You got Ingrid killed! You put all of them in jeopardy!"

Leon lunged forward trying to grab a hold of Markus's clothing only to be blocked by Chris. Markus himself jumped back rapidly and tripped, almost cowering in fear as Chris dealt with the flailing man.

"Leon! Please for your own sake you need to calm down!"

_"_No! Let go of me! He deserves hell! Why are you holding me back? Its him you should be going after!"

"Leon that's enough!"

The agents almost soulless eyes met Claire's as she showed up and came to his side, gently giving him a pat on the shoulder as Chris still held him back. He panted hard as he glanced at all three of them. He couldn't help but feel like a monkey in the middle as he tried to piece together what was going on. How did everyone get out? Where was Jake and Sherry? Why was Markus not being attacked by the Claire or Chris? So many questions troubled Leon's mind as he shut his eyes. Not long after he felt Claire placed her forehead on his head and gently whisper to him.

"You're safe, you're grounded, and you're here. Leon its gonna be alright. I promise you like you promised me. Everything will be okay."

His eyes soon shot open as he looked up at Claire, his muscles relaxing a bit as he looked up at Chris for a mere moment before looking at Markus, still with contempt but not the murderous frenzy he had not that long ago as he coughed.

"W-why? Why did you betray us to your godfather, Crane?"

Markus, with a somber look knelt down towards the injured man as Chris helped Leon lean against the wall for a bit. The man's green eyes glanced about as sweat protruded down his forehead.

"We don't have much time, we have to get going otherwise more of Crane's men are going to come. Allow me to share at least this piece of it. I did what I had to do in order to protect Claire and everyone else. I went through Crane's plan to lure you and Helena into his trap with every intention of getting you all out of here. I got placed into the government to one day finally help Crane and the rest of the Family take revenge on you and Helena. I had every ill will to complete the task but then—Claire, she changed me. Kennedy, when I told you I loved her deeply I meant every word. I'm taking a huge risk and a giant leap of faith to get everyone out of this mess I helped create. I know you won't be able to find it in your heart to forgive me, especially after what happened to Ingrid but know that—Leon she knew what she was getting into."

"What..how dare you!"

He shouted as he once more tried to lunge at Markus only to have his fist grabbed by Chris's hand. He hissed out loud as Claire gave a saddened look followed by Markus. Chris then forced Leon to look at him for the moment as he cleared his throat, and gave both Claire and the other man a chance to compose themselves.

"One of them had to die. Sherry, Claire, or Ingrid. If Markus didn't go through with letting it happen to one of them, Crane would have just killed them all on the spot including you, and even Helena. If Markus didn't play the game and act the part, he was going to pay the price. After Markus had my sister and everyone else kidnapped for Crane, both he and Ingrid talked privately after she begged for him not to harm the girls or anyone. Markus told Hunnigan about his plans, how he intended on saving everyone and getting us all out of this mess and putting a stop to Crane. She even knew one of them had to be dispatched otherwise, the plans to save you and Helena plus arresting that son of a bitch would have gone flying out the window along with the lives of Sherry and Jake. Look, I know this is really hard for you take in. It still is even for me."

Chris paused for a moment, taking a chance to even shoot a quick glare at Markus who seemed to retreat back a bit more as he rubbed his forehead tenderly.

"The only reason why I am preventing you from killing this guy is because he saved my sister from dying and he got me and some of my other men out of the pit. Trust me when I say this Leon, if he so much as harms Claire or anyone else from this point on and I see it I won't hesitate to shoot him."

Chris then let Leon go, letting the man collect his barrings at least the mental ones before the agent let out a heavy pant and looked back up at Markus, his eyes still carrying a signature glare as he merely shook his head in defeat.

"Say I do put my trust into you, how do you intend to help aside from getting Chris and Claire out?"

Claire gently tugged Leon's arm as she shook her head.

"Markus didn't help me get out, Ada did."

"Ada?!"

Claire merely nodded as Chris gave a disgruntled look before standing up, crossing his arms.

"She somehow sneaked onto Crane's personal jet along with Markus. The two of them go way back apparently."

A perplexed look filled the agents face with confusion as his mind tried to wrap around everything that was being stated to him. Markus then sighed, rubbing his neck where Leon had grabbed it, letting out a light hiss as he somberly looked upon the broken man.

"Ada and I go back all the way to Raccoon City. I wasn't part of the conspiracy but my other half brother, John Clemens was her partner whom originally use to work for the Chicago Umbrella branch. See, once the Family caught wind of what was going on in Raccoon City, at least with the research with bio-organic weapons, they dispatched John to go in undercover and retrieve some samples and sabotage the pharmaceutical company because it was getting in the way of Crane Enterprises, along the way he was supposed work up in rank and enhance the t-virus for Crane's personal gain. Because of the under the table dealings occurring within Umbrella, John began to hold great resentment towards the staff and in return the company eventually caught wind of his plans to reveal to the world what they were really doing in the Arklay labs. He was eventually silenced when the outbreak at the facility occurred in 1998. The poor fool didn't know that Umbrella found out what his real identity was and that he was related to the Family. They struck a deal with my godfather Crane to have him die once the outbreak occurred and in return Crane would get a huge stock exchange with Umbrella even if things were to plummet with the company for his silence. Ada, since she worked for the Family and apparently, another organization posed as a researcher to get some t-virus samples for both the Family and for the latter. She fell in love with my brother while they posed together. They both intended to bring everything Umbrella was doing up to the surface, and even had plans to run off together once she had fulfilled her end of the bargain to both parties. Ada caught wind of the plan to have John killed off, and she pleaded with the Family to spare him and she would continue to serve the Family for the remainder of her life, as long as it took to satisfy their needs. Well, they lied to her. By the time my godfather promised John's life he was already dead, and she was out there in that god-forbidden city looking for him. That is why she ended up working for the Family all these years, and why she never had the chance to settle once she laid her eyes on you Kennedy. She's been after Crane ever since then, knowing that he got John killed off. I was the only one in this huge mess of thieves and conniving monsters who took pity on her, which is why I wanted to help her out. I had no intention to help you nor Helena once I infiltrated and got into government because I too wanted revenge for what happened to Kent and Derek, but when I realized that you were her Leon, and that you were Claire's savior I-I couldn't bare it. Can't you see now this goes beyond either of us? I did what I had to do, so Claire would be saved and Ada and I would get revenge against my godfather for killing off John. John meant the world to me, he was the only person in this fucking pit that even cared for me next to Gregory and looked what happened to him at the facility weeks ago! I'm tired of Wesley using my family, at least my side of it, as pawns!"

"Why didn't you tell me you had another brother aside Gregory and Gerono? Why didn't you tell me the truth about everything in the first place?!"

"You wouldn't have believed me. Especially if I had mentioned him and Ada in the interrogation room after the calamity that occurred at the government facility. We both know you would have scolded me and tossed me into a cell. Face it, you were too angry especially after your wife got infected to listen to anyone or anything."

The agent was shocked hearing Ada had made it all the way over here, but then again as he thought back carefully Helena still had the butterfly hair clip with the wiretap in her hair during the night they were taken. He closed his eyes for a moment, thinking he was a fool for questioning how the spy managed to target their location. Leon even felt a part of himself feel guilty for yelling at her during the night she had sneaked into the hotel room. She wasn't just there to bring up a hurtful memory from the past involving the two of them. His mind tried really hard to take in the information that Markus had just given to him, and that alone turned the tides of this very mission for Leon as he sighed deeply. Now understanding Ada's pain, why she was so hell bent on capturing Crane, why she was so focused on revenge and why she couldn't stop pining Helena and him long after the mission was given out Leon knew he had to put aside his vendetta with Markus for the moment. Ada had many dark secrets, and probably more that she never told Leon before as the plot thickened. The agent then began to feel a little guilty upon registering the last of Markus's words. He was right. If the man were to suddenly have told him his involvement with Ada and the like, he would have dismissed it because his judgment was clouded by Helena's sudden infection. Leon deeply sighed, almost lonesomely as he tried to piece together coherent words.

"Ada only mentioned John a few times during the length of our relationship. I-I had no idea-"

Leon's baffled mind caused him to tremble as he pieced together everything. His body was weak and his head was overfilled. He began coughing hard as Claire gently helped him get up.

"Leon?"

He held up his hand gently to silence her as he looked at Markus, more thoughtfully than he had ever done before as the man had some beads of water shake down his skin. Leon gave himself a moment to think as he once more looked at the man's deep sea green eyes sternly.

"If everything you said is true, and since you helped Chris and Claire get out. I will give you the benefit of the doubt. Especially hearing everything you just told me. But lets make one thing clear though: Once this is all over, and once Helena and everyone is safe and your godfather long captured, we have a score to settle. For everything you've done, and for everything you intended to do to my wife and unborn child-"

"Helena is pregnant!?"

Chris and Claire both found themselves nearly shouting as Leon kept his gaze on Markus. The man too had a surprised look dance across his features as his mouth went agape.

"K-Kennedy—I had no idea—I,"

"Save it for later. I don't need your sympathy. I just want my wife back and in once piece. Same thing goes with everybody else. You do that, I'll make sure the government courts will try you for attempting to assassinate Helena and myself. No ones blood will be on your hands. But mark my words, EVERYONE is to make it out alive."

Claire had a remorseful look creep across her features as she in turn looked at Markus. The man seemed to be debating with himself on the matter, and his fists clenched. There was no way he could outrun the sins he had committed. They were far too great compared to being caught as a member of the notorious Family. Now also hearing the news Leon bared about Helena, made him almost want to find a corner to sink into. Realizing that once this was over, he would most likely be put to death unless spared by the vengeful agent, Markus swallowed his pride and nodded.

"I-I promise. Also I'll gladly let you arrest me long after this is over."

"Markus please don't-"

"Claire, my mind has been made up. I've already done too much to you and everyone else."

Chris gave a light glare, but loosened up as he turned his attention to Leon, allowing the agent to use him as a crutch as he limped to keep on his feet.

"Alright, now that you guys have had a chat at least we need to go get Sherry and Jake."

Leon nodded.

"Right Chris but where are they?"

"They are on the other side of the compound. Crane had them moved towards the area where the B.O.W. Ecological zoo has been established. We have a bit of a problem though with heading there and retrieving Birkin and co. Since Crane noticed me and Chris coming to your direction, he set off alarms and activated a barrier around the mansion because the B.O.W's in the biological preserve are now free to roam the private island."

"Jesus Christ..."

Leon merely mumbled as his lips quivered taking in the news. Claire herself even tensed up, not knowing of this predicament either.

"Markus, how many B.O.W's would you say are roaming around there?"

Claire asked nervously while Markus gave a solemn bow with his head, almost one in pure and utter despair as he slowly muttered.

"About seven hundred and twenty two. Jake and Sherry are probably only protected by the small underground shelter established for anyone who is out in the jungle if Crane were to activate this security measure. I have a plan though, if we all make it to the garage area of the mansion and get one of the caged jeeps we can take one and take a trail I know of to get to Sherry and Jake. I have the pass code for getting out of the barrier Crane has set up around the mansion. We can also easily get back the same way we entered."

"What about guards and what not trying to take us down? A few days ago when I managed to get a good look out, there was roughly a couple hundred guarding the whole perimeter."

Chris said as he balanced out Leon while Markus took a moment to clean his glasses off on his shirt.

"That won't be an issue. Since I released your men before you Redfield, I already told them to go throughout the entire mansion and dispose of Crane's cronies and try to ambush him which will lead to his arrest. Same thing for Edmona, and don't worry they will also be looking for Helena and Ada. I am sure Ada is with her right now though as we speak since Ada told me after getting off the plane that she was going to find Helena first before anybody else."

In that moment, Leon made sincere eye contact with Markus as the man merely gave a light smile. It was probably perhaps the first promising look Markus had ever given another as he nodded slightly.

"She made it very clear to me Kennedy that Helena's safety was important. I promise you as soon as we get Jake and Sherry, we will rendezvous with the two of them."

Leon, even though he was weak and tired and his heart filled with rage found himself calming down once a thorough plan had been established. No matter what, everyone was going to make it. Even if Markus couldn't keep his promise to help. Knowing that Ada was teamed up with his wife brought great comfort as he found himself becoming more mentally stable and less manic from the physical and mental trauma he had not long ago endured. With a simple sigh, the agent breathed in new life as his demeanor changed to a serious note, the inner strength that had kept him up before was coming back.

"Lets get me patched up if humanely possible, and lets roll."

With that, it seemed almost in unison the team all nodded together and headed out of the area. No matter what the danger, no matter what other secrets might be bequeathed to them, they were gonna see this nightmare through to the end.


End file.
